Dil Chahata Hai
by Rekall
Summary: Atemu, a cat demon, finds himself being hunted by Seto Kaiba, a demon hunter who is searching for the demon who killed his brother. Also after Atemu is Bakura who wants revenge. [SetoYami]
1. Burn Baby Burn

**A/N - **Story #2 of the Kitty Yami series! Thanks once again to my GSB for coming up with this plot demon and my wifey for making me write it.

* * *

The leopard's jaws dug into the fleshy stomach of the wild boar and ripped off another hunk of meat. The leopard and the dead boar were high up in a tree, nestled on a huge branch, the boar being held up by the leopard's powerful paws. 

With a tired yawn, the leopard released the boar from his grasp causing the dead animal to tumble to the forest floor. The leopard then laid his head down and closed his crimson eyes wanting some sleep. The forest was quiet therefore the leopard easily heard a branch snap down on the ground as someone step on it.

Curious, the leopard opened his red eyes to see what had caused the noise. It wasn't long before the leopard saw a man and his young son walking along the path.

'_Jackpot,'_ the leopard, Atemu, thought to himself. He had been lost in the woods for a while and it would be nice to be around civilization again. Transforming into a black house cat, Atemu hurried down the tree and over to the two humans.

"Daddy! Look!"

"Don't touch it Yuan," the father warned. "It may seem like a friendly cat but it could have a number of diseases."

Atemu huffed in protest at that remark. He was perfectly healthy, in the prime of his life being around 3018 years old. He was offended that someone would think other wise but he knew he should expect something like that from a mere human.

"Can we take him home?"

"Absolutely not!"

With another kitty huff, Atemu darted back up the tree. It didn't matter if he went with the humans or not. He could easily follow them to their village after they moved along.

Atemu waited until the father and son were almost out of sight before once again climbing down from the tree. He then followed the pair at a safe distance so that they were unaware he was there.

Atemu was neither leopard nor house cat but a demon with the ability to transform into both animals, a rarity among his kind. 3000 years ago Atemu had lived among other demons until he was 18 and traveled to the Pool of Destiny with his best friend, a fire demon called Bakura. The vision Atemu had been given ad lead him to almost killing Bakura while the fire demon slept. Bakura had woken up though, which had been the only thing to stop the cat demon.

Since that day Atemu had been shunned by the demon society. Therefore he spent most of the past 3000 years living as a leopard and cat. Most recently, Atemu had been living in a forest, lost and unable to find a village to stay at. That would soon change however as long as he kept following the father and child. It would be nice to be around people again. Besides, whenever Atemu was around humans it always gave him an excuse to try and find the all brunet from his vision. It had been 3000 years but Atemu still remembered every one of the brunet's features.

'_Seto…'_ the cat demon thought as he continued following the humans.

* * *

_'Seto…'_

Seto Kaiba rolled over in his sleep. A demon hunter for the past five of his 22 years, Seto had vowed to hunt down and kill every demon after witnessing the death of his young brother, murdered by a demon who attacked their village. Seto was still seeking revenge for that incident. Lately however the demon hunter had been troubled by dreams he had during his sleep. Ever since he had turned 18, at times when he was asleep he'd hear an unfamiliar but comforting voice calling out his name.

Blinking open his eyes, Seto got a good look at his surroundings as he sat up. He had forgotten he had stayed at an inn that night instead of camping out in the woods like normal. It had been pouring rain the night before so Seto had traveled to a nearby village to spend the night.

The demon hunter glanced out the small window in his room; it was still raining which annoyed Seto. It was hard hunting in the rain for it covered up tracks and many demons chose to stay inside during that type of weather. But still, it gave him an opportunity to question the town's people if there had been any suspicious activity lately.

Seto favored the color black, dressing mostly in that color. Black boots, pants and shirt, with the small exception for a long white cape, Seto began reattaching his weapons to his body. First it was a belt that had his sword and a dagger attached to it and then he placed a quiver full of arrows on his back along with his bow. Fully clothed he was ready to get some work done.

* * *

"Meow."

"Scoot cat!" the woman protested trying to hit Atemu with her broom. Atemu hissed at the woman before hurrying off her porch.

'_Stupid bitch,'_ Atemu thought to himself. He really didn't like that village much; the people were so rude to a harmless, hungry cat.

Hungrily, Atemu wandered around in search of other sources of food. There were no wild animals near the village to hunt since two rivers, keeping both human and animal predators away, surrounded the village. The bridges across the rivers were guarded at all times and even a cat would get noticed if he crossed it one to many times.

As well Atemu was not yet ready to leave human company. He had already tried transforming into his human form but he had gotten turned away at the tavern when they found out he had no money.

Walking through the village, Atemu hungrily eyed the small pasture of cattle. He hated resorting to killing livestock but he had to eat. With no other option, Atemu decided that as soon as the sun fell he would feast.

* * *

"Excuse me sir," a polite voice said. Looking up from where he sat drinking some ale, Seto found a blond haired, teenage boy. "Are you the demon hunter I've heard about?"

"I am," Seto confirmed as he took another sip of his drink. The Weather had kept Seto suck at the village for a while and he was eager to find out what the boy wanted with him. "Have a seat."

"Thank you sir. Please help us. My name is Alexei and I come from the neighboring village Kukai. My father sent me to find you since we heard there was a hunter in the area and we think there might be a demon at our village."

"What makes you think that?" Seto inquired wanting to make sure this was more than paranormal thoughts. He had encountered many demon scares in his career, which turned out to be nothing more than an animal or an act of human negligent.

"A week ago a small black cat arrived in our village-"

"So?"

"He has crimson eyes."

"Go on…"

"Then a few days ago our livestock started being killed…"

"Wild animals?"

"No sir! Kukai is surrounded by two rivers for defense so any animals always stays on the other side of the water. Our bridges are guarded every night and never is there evidence that something has swam across the river."

"Anything else?"

"During the night we'll hear growling as if a monster is in the village. We're all too scared to go look when we hear it but in the morning we'll fine footprints of a large cat. These footprints are never found on the other side of the rivers so whatever is causing the footprints is in the village."

"Alright, lead me to this Kukai village and I'll look around. If you do have a demon, I'll take care of it."

"Thank you sir!"

The pair stood and walked out of the tavern unaware that the entire time they had been over heard by the white haired person sitting one table over.

"Cat demon eh?" The person murmured quietly to himself. A smirk appeared on Bakura's lips as he raised his cup of rum to his mouth. "Looks like I've finally found you Kitten."

* * *

Atemu was asleep on a roof when he was awaken by the chatter of people down below. _'Annoying humans,'_ Atemu bitterly thought to himself but he decided to eavesdrop anyway.

"Alexei has gone to find that demon hunter said to be in the area."

"Good…then our problem will be gone."

Atemu sat up in alarm as he overheard what they said. A demon hunter on his way to the village was not a good thing.

The cat demon mused over his two options, either leave before the hunter got there or use his human form and try and trick the hunter into thinking he was merely human. He knew however a professional demon hunter would not be so easily tricked though.

While debating still what to do, Atemu's eyes fell upon the old windmill in the distance, not too far away but far enough that it should be a safe hiding spot from any demon hunter. The windmill had been abandoned some years ago after a man was found murdered inside so Atemu knew it would make the perfect hiding place until the hunter left.

Jumping down from the roof, Atemu hurried across the bridge and raced towards the windmill before the hunter arrived.

* * *

"This is Kukai!" Alexei proudly said to the demon hunter as he lead Seto across the bridge and into the village.

"Good…I think I'll start my investigation by checking out that cat you mentioned."

"Too late it already ran off," a passing woman said who had overheard him. "He headed off towards the old windmill."

"Fine, I'll check it out. I'll be back later to see if the cat has any connection to those monster noises you've been hearing all night."

Turning around Seto walked back across the bridge and began following the path to the windmill in hopes of finding the cat he had been warned about. He wasn't at all surprised when he saw small cat footprints in the dirt leading in the direction of the windmill. "I got you," he whispered before hurrying off down the path.

"Interesting…" Bakura quietly murmured to himself as he watched the demon hunter from his hiding place behind a large tree. Bakura had been following the hunter and the boy ever since they had left the other village, as he knew they would lead him to Atemu.

Summoning a fire in the palm of his hand, Bakura stared into the flames. "You'll burn tonight Kitten."

* * *

Seto's piercing blue eyes searched around the inside of the abandoned windmill. His bow and arrow was cocked ready in firing position as he stalked through the dark building looking for the small black cat he had followed inside.

Seto knew the cat was a demon. No normal cat had red eyes nor could have been responsible for killing livestock in the nearby village. Like all demons, the cat deserved to die.

As Seto continued to hunt throughout the discarded windmill he was unaware he was being watched by unseen crimson eyes. The small cat was crouched down, hiding under a shelf, hoping the demon hunter would leave soon.

Atemu held his breath as the black boots of the demon hunter pasted by him. The hunter was good; Atemu gave him credit for that. As the hunter moved along, Atemu stuck his head out a little to marvel in the hunter's handsomeness. For a long time Atemu had been searching for the person he had a vision of at the Pool of Destiny and when he had finally found him, Atemu was horrified to discover that his secret love was a demon hunter.

Atemu's cat nose twitched upon catching a familiar scent, one different from the demon hunter. Glancing around the building, Atemu found the white-haired demon, leaning up again the wall in a corner. With his cat eyes, Atemu could easily see the fire demon smirk in the dark. Moving his arms, Bakura pressed a palm on the wall next to him. Before Atemu knew what was happening, the wall was lit on fire.

Smelling the smoke, Seto spun around only to find a wall of fire springing up from the ground and surround the fire demon, allowing Bakura to make his escape through his fire traveling ability.

"Shit," Seto grumbled. The demon hunter was about to abandon his quest for the cat demon when he caught a quick black movement of the cat he was hunting run from it's hiding place as it also tried escaping the windmill before the fire burned it to the ground.

The fire was rapidly growing quicker, but Seto had never lost a demon he was hunting and he wasn't about to start now. Ignoring the blaze, Seto fired an arrow in the cat's direction, swearing again when he missed. His swears soon turned to coughs however as the smoke intensified.

Turning around, Seto wisely decided to leave the cat for now and escape from the windmill while he still could. However when the cat distracted him, Seto had failed to notice that the fire and smoke were both spreading throughout the building fast.

The smoke burned at Seto's eyes and he continued to cough. Seto struggled to stay upright as he tried stumbling towards the exit. But he soon was unable to stop himself from falling to the ground.

Seeing the hunter fall, Atemu hurried to his side and began nudging at his neck with his nose. When that got no response, Atemu quickly transformed into his human form. "Wake up!" he begged as he shook Seto's body in between coughs of his own. The hunter still however did move.

Grabbing Seto's arms, Atemu attempted to drag Seto out of the burning building but quickly discovered that because of their size difference the hunter was too heavy for him to drag. Reluctantly, Atemu transformed into his leopard form. Taking Seto's white cape into his mouth, Atemu began dragging the hunter through the blaze. Soon they were out on the grassy lawn in front of the burning windmill.

Seto gave a small groan upon them reaching the fresh air and Atemu knew that he would be okay. Transforming back into a cat, Atemu curled up next to Seto's head, cuddling close to the hunter waiting for further help to arrive.


	2. Meow, Meow, Meow

**A/N - **Thank you for the reviews everyone!

_Jade_ - Yup I mean the black kind of leoprad. "Black Panther" refers to both black leopards and jaguars. A leopard suited Yami more for what I needed (smaller then a jaguar, fast, good tree climbers, strong, powerful, agents of darkness, etc) so I used the word leopard cause I didn't want threatening reviews thinking that I meant jaguar when I said "panther". As for Seto, I love the Final Fantasy games (grew up on them) but his outfit was actually inspired by a picture I have. I'm busy right now but later I'll upload it to KnY so you can see it. (would put in a smily face but ffnet would cut it off)

* * *

Seto blinked his eyes open to find a girl with long brunette hair hovering over him. Looking around Seto found he was in a small cottage that he deduced must be in the town that was near the windmill where he had been hunting the cat. Seto wondered what had happened as the last thing he remembered was blacking out during the fire. Somehow he had been saved but he doubted it was the girl's doing 

"I'm glad you're awake, you're lucky to be alive," the girl said as she wiped at Seto's brow with a damp cloth. "You and your cat."

"Cat?" Seto questioned. Turning his head slightly, Seto received a face full of black fur as he found the sleeping cat next to him.

"Yes. Is he not yours?" the girl asked him. "My father was one of the first on scene when we saw the smoke rising from the windmill. The villagers found you and the cat outside the mill. The cat was asleep but woke when we began moving you. He followed you here and haven't left your side since. We assumed he was yours since he seemed to know you and felt bad for suspecting that he was a demon. After the fire we figured you sent him here to do some investigation and we thank you for it."

"Umm…you're welcome…I'm thirsty, can you get me some water, please?" Seto asked the girl who silently nodded before leaving the room.

"Wake up you," the hunter commanded as he sat up and began nudging the cat with his hand. Crimson eyes slowly open as Atemu stood and stretched his body. The cat then began rubbing his head against Seto's hand looking for pets.

With a disgusted growl, Seto shoved the cat to the floor. He quickly looked around for his weapons but before he could find them, Atemu had jumped back onto the bed, had climbed into the hunter's lap and began purring.

"Fine! You can live Demon," the hunter grumbled as he unconsciously stroked the cat's back. He noticed that the tips of the cat's fur had been singed in the fire.

"Here is your water Master Hunter," the girl said walking back into the room carrying the glass. She also had a bowl of milk for the cat. The girl handed Seto his water before placing the bowl on the floor, the black cat eagerly jumped down and began lapping at the milk.

"Thank you for your hospitality but I really must be going soon," Seto said to her after drowning his water. His muscles protested as he stood wanting more rest but he still had a job to do.

"I understand Master Hunter," the girl replied. "You have a very demanding job. Your items are in the other room. I will retrieve them for you."

With a small bow, the girl left, once again leaving the hunter and demon alone. Finished with his milk, Atemu quickly jumped up onto Seto's shoulders and immediately settled down.

"Oh no you don't!" Seto protested as he once again shoved the cat to the floor. "I don't know how but you must have some super demon strength for saving my life. That means I'll spare yours for now, not that you have a new best friend!"

Seto growled as the cat sat and stared up at him. Seto eyed Atemu as the cat made a move to leap back up onto his shoulders but once again the girl interrupted them.

"Here are your weapons, sir," she said handing him his quiver of arrows, bow, sword and dagger. "I also found this for your cat. It is wise to have a way to identify him from the many stray cats that roam the land."

Crouching down, the girl tied a red ribbon around the cat's neck. Attached to the ribbon was a small bell that would sound with every footstep the cat took. Seto couldn't help but laugh at the annoyed expression on the cat's face.

Seto had meant to leave the cat behind in the village. After gathering his things he had taken off quickly wanting to get away from the cat. Much to his annoyance however he had barely got out side the village when he heard a meow from behind him.

"Go away!" The cat however made no move to leave. Instead Atemu sat staring up at Seto with his crimson eyes.

"Leave!" The bell around Atemu's neck jingled as the cat got up and walked forward, rubbing his head against the hunter's leg. Seto made a move to kick the cat but then stopped himself; the cat really had not done any harm and had saved his life, perhaps he was wrong in thinking that all demons were evil.

As Seto was lost in his thoughts, he was caught off guard when Atemu jumped up onto his shoulders. The cat gave a gentle meow and rubbed against the hunter's neck before settling down and closings his eyes.

"Fine you can come with me," Seto reluctantly sighed as he reached up and petted Atemu's head. The cat gave off a purr of content. "At least this allows me to keep an eye on you."

The cat was silent now as Atemu fell into a peaceful sleep but Seto continued talking to him. It was nice change to have someone to talk to even if it was a demon cat. "I guess I should name you now….I think I'll call you Yami."

* * *

Atemu…Yami…lounged in the sun while he watched the demon hunter wade into the lake. Seto was stripped naked so he could bathe himself in the warm water. It had only been a day since the fire and he wanted to clean off the smoke smell from his body. Atemu certainly had gotten an eye full when Seto had stripped down to nothing right in front of him. Seto still knew that Atemu was a demon but had no clue that Yami also had a human form. 

Seto swam across the lake while Atemu continued playing lifeguard, keeping an eye out for danger from where he laid. His head was lifted up so he could watch the demon hunter while his tail flickered back and forth in the sun.

The tall brunet eventually padded back to shore and flopped down on the grassy ground next to the black cat. Seto reached over to pet Atemu, who rolled onto his back and batted his paws playfully up at the demon hunter.

"You are kind of cute," Seto admitted with a small sigh. "But what am I going to do with you?"

"Meow".

"Damnit, I know you're a demon! I know it was you who killed those livestock; something a normal cat would not be able to do! And just how did you pull me out of that fire?"

"Meow".

"Okay, I'm obviously going crazy since I'm now talking to a cat. That fire must have effected me more then I originally thought."

"Meow."

"Shut up Yami," the hunter grumbled but he continued petting the small animal. Contently Atemu purred and rubbed his head into the palm of Seto's hand. "Yeah, you're cute."

* * *

Days passed while Seto and Atemu traveled together and became closer friends. Atemu was now used to being called 'Yami'. He really didn't mind Seto giving him that name. In fact he kind of liked it. At times Seto would spend long hours talking to the black cat. It was during one of those rambling talks that Atemu discovered 'Yami' meant 'darkness' in Seto's original language. Atemu thought 'darkness' suited him, not only his fur color but also because he was a leopard, which were called the agents of darkness for their abilities to excel at night. There was as well his past. He knew he would eventually have to come clean with Seto about his identity but for now he would wait content with merely being the demon hunter's pet. 

Currently the pair was sitting next to a unite fire which Seto was trying to light. Unfortunately the area was damp which was causing some trouble for the demon hunter.

"Let me help," a voice said and seconds later the wood sparkled as it automatically lit on fire without anyone touching it. Snapping his head around, Seto found a slim white haired individual walking towards him and 'Yami'. The white haired individual stopped in front of the now lit campfire and smirked across it at the surprised demon hunter and cat.

"You're the one from that fire!" Seto snarled reaching for his sword that had been set on the ground next to him, so he could be more comfortable on the ground. The demon hunter however found himself cut off from it by a wall of fire that sprung up from the ground. Not so easily defeated, Seto still had his bow pulling it free from where it was attached to his back. Stringing an arrow, Seto fired at the white haired demon only to have the arrow disintegrate in a column of fire that shot from the demon's hand.

"Easy Hunter my beef isn't with you." The demon then turned his attention to the small black cat that was now hiding behind Seto with only his small head visible so he could watch what was happening. "Hello Kitten."

"Leave Yami alone!"

"Yami, huh?" The fire demon chuckled with amusement. "Nice…but I still prefer Kitten."

"Who are you?" Seto demanded to know, narrowing his eyes at the white haired individual.

"Bakura and I'm growing tired of this small talk." Extending a hand towards the campfire, the flames shot towards the Seto's face stopping only inches away from burning his skin. Seto tried backing up but Bakura would only extend the flames further so the demon hunter could do nothing but stay still and glare at the fire demon. "Come out and talk Kitten or your new friend dies. You have until the count of three. One…Two…"

"Bakura stop!"

Surprised, Seto took the risk to look next to him and instead of find a small, black cat he found a short young man with tri-colored spiky hair. The young man dressed in tight black leather and black cape.

"Nice bell Kitten."

It was only then that Seto realized Yami still had his red ribbon with bell around his neck. Seto would have laughed if it was a different situation where he didn't have flames scorching his skin. The hunter watched with interest as Yami glared at the fire demon with angrily crimson eyes.

"What do you want Bakura?"

"Revenge."

"That was 3000 years ago!"

"I keep grudges a long time…"

"Bastard!"

"You're the one who attempted to kill me Kitten. I was just going to kill you but I think killing your new boyfriend will be more fun." With a sick grin on his face, Bakura had the flames inch closer to Seto's face.

"Stop it Bakura!" Yami angrily yelled at he lunged at the fire demon, transforming mid air into a leopard.

Yami caught Bakura by surprise and landed on him and they both fell to the ground with a heavy thud. Yami clawed at Bakura's body with his paws and sunk his teeth into Bakura's shoulder. The two demons rolled on a few times while Bakura fought to get out of Yami's grasp causing the cat demon to lose his grip on his former friend.

"Bastard!" Bakura spat at him as he stood and dusted himself off. Standing as well, Yami got ready to lunge again but before he could Bakura surrounded himself with a circle of fire. When the fire disappeared Bakura was gone.

Turning human again, Yami looked back at Seto to make sure he was safe and the campfire was back to normal. Instead he found Seto still kneeling on the ground but now with an arrow aimed at his head.

"Listen Seto I can explain…" Yami began but Seto wasn't wavering. "You knew I was a demon!"

"And I was right!"

"It's not like I lied to you!"

"True…" Seto admitted looking unsure of himself and he lowered the bow slightly. "And I owe you my life a second time now." The demon hunter scowled at this. "But I deserve an explanation."

"That was Bakura," Yami explained.

"I gathered…whoever the hell Bakura is..."

"We used to be friends until I tried to kill him…"

Seto quickly rose back up the bow and aimed it once again at the cat demon. "Admitting to attempting to kill your friend is not helping your cause."

"I can explain! When we were teens Bakura and I traveled to the Pool of Destiny…"

"That place actually exists?"

"Yes! Demons use it as a right of passage into adulthood. When demons look into the pool they'll be shown a glimpse of their future. I saw Bakura starting that fire with both you and I in it. So I tried killing him in his sleep to stop him but he woke up and attacked me. I swear I learned my lesson and regret what I did but I can't take it back! Obviously Bakura hasn't forgiven me for what happened since he's still trying to kill me…"

"Why should I believe you?"

"Seto you said it yourself, I saved your life twice. If I meant you harm I wouldn't have done it. I know I should have told you about myself and I'm for not being honest."

"A demon killed my brother," Seto spat as he lowered his bow once again. "I should have killed you before we left Kukai. I knew you'd bring me nothing but trouble."

"I know what happened to Mokuba." Seto winched at the mention of his brother's name but he remained quiet. "But not all demons are like the one who killed him." Taking a chance, Atemu kneeled on the ground next to Seto and placed a gentle hand on the hunter's knee. "I truly am sorry about your brother but I can help you get revenge. I can help you find the demon that did it. Even a demon hunter would have trouble against a powerful demon, which I think is the case in this situation.

"I work alone," Seto huffed shifting away from Yami.

"You didn't a few days ago…"

"That was different!"

"How so? You knew I was a demon then but suspected I was only a cat. You've since found out other wise but I fail to see how anything has changed."

"I don't even know you're name and you want me to trust you?"

"I like Yami."

"That's not you're name and you know it!"

"But that's what I prefer."

"Just tell me your name or leave!" Seto snapped.

"It's Atemu."

* * *

"Damn that bastard," Bakura muttered as he tended to the wound on his shoulder. He hadn't expected Atemu to be so defensive over the well being of the demon hunter. Currently Bakura was sitting on the ground some miles away from where he had his encounter with the hunter and the cat demon. He had only run far enough away to clean and wrap up the wound. 

It was not uncommon for demons to grow attachments with another but they were only meant to be with the mate their goddess had chosen for them. Nothing could break the bond of two mated demons, not even death, but Bakura knew they had another few years until the latest 500 years were up allowing demons to mate again with a human and turn their mate into one of them.

"I wonder…" Bakura mused as he thought things over. Most demons wouldn't even bother looking for their potential mate until a few months before the ritual, but it was possible.

If Atemu had already found his mate then Bakura would have to change his game plan on extracting his revenge. If the hunter were destined to be with Atemu, then the cat demon would do whatever it took to protect him.

"I need sex," Bakura concluded as he stood and began walking towards the nearest town.


	3. Freaky Dance of Love

**A/N** - Blink an you might miss Malik's cameo. And before I get any hate mail, yes I'm lazy. Use your imaginations to picture the rest of the lime.

* * *

Atemu crouched down at the edge of the water and lapped at the clear liquid. He was a cat again as he knew Seto was more comfortable that way. Although one day he wished that he could be in his human form all the time around the sexy hunter. 

"We should get going soon."

"Meow." Looking up and over his shoulder Atemu found Seto standing behind him. Turning around Atemu jumped up on Seto's shoulders ready to go. Settling down, Atemu was soon fast asleep once again.

As Seto walked he was quickly lost in thought. It had been only a day since his talk with the cat demon and he didn't know what to do. Currently an internal struggle was battling in his mind. Part of him wanted to kill the cat but even that part of him admitted he owed the cat demon for saving his life. But then again his life would never have been in jeopardy if it hadn't been for Yami.

The other part of him wanted to continue on with thinking Yami was just a cat. Although it had only been a few days, he had grown close to Yami in that time period. He didn't want to give up his pet.

Suddenly pausing in his trackers, Seto shoved the sleeping cat off his shoulders. "Wake up, Yami. We need to talk."

Although taken by surprise, Atemu landed gracefully on his feet. Transforming into his human form, Atemu looked up at the demon hunter with his crimson eyes alert.

"What is it Seto?"

"You said you can help me find my brother's killer."

"Yes."

"How so? I've spent five years tracing every part of the world and have yet to been able to identify who did it."

"Because you haven't been looking in the right places," Atemu explained as he sat down on the ground. Patting the earth next to him, Seto reluctantly sat as well. "You should be questioning demons, not killing them."

"So you know who did it?" Seto anxiously asked.

"No, I've been out of the demon community for a long time," Yami replied with a shake of his head.

"For what you did?"

"Yes. I was afraid to go back to my village. Facing the Elders would have been unbearable so I stayed away."

"Great so my only key of getting close to other demons has been shunned by their society." Seto sarcastically grumbled.

"That was 3000 years ago," Atemu stressed. "Anyone who remembers won't care. I was a child then and scared. Besides they would understand when they listen to my story."

"So you want me to go into the heart of enemy territory with someone who hasn't been there for 3000 years?"

"Yes."

"3000 years is a long time. How do you know things haven't change since then? They could kill me on the spot for who I am, then kill you for what you did. In my experience demons are violent individuals, who will kill mercilessly. Take your friend Bakura for example, he tried to kill me twice just for being in your presence."

"That's true, we can be violent when we have to," Atemu sadly admitted. "You're just going to have to trust me on this one. If we can get to my old village we'll be under the protection of the Elders. Even you will be protected as no one is allowed to use their powers in the village. You'd more then be able to defend yourself if attacked."

"I still don't like this," Seto grumbled as the pounded the ground in frustration. "I'm a famous demon hunter, they're demons. They aren't exactly going to welcome me with open arms."

"Have you not been listening to anything I've said?" Yami asked in annoyance. "Messalina forbids us to use our powers in our village. It's too dangerous for us as she was killed by humans who were able to distinguish her from them because of her powers. Therefore openly using our powers in our village only draws unwanted attention. You've probably even been to demon villages but never knew it as they were always hiding. Please trust me on this!"

"Trust a demon?" Seto scoffed.

Reaching up with one hand Atemu gently stroked Seto's cheek. "You've trusted me this much. All I ask is for you to trust me a little bit more."

Reluctantly Seto found himself memorized with Atemu's eyes as the cat demon continued stroking his cheek. The deep redness of Atemu's eyes drew Seto in. They were so loving and caring but at the same time strong and powerful.

"I trust you." Seto found himself saying. Atemu then quickly pulled away and stood once again leaving Seto to blink a few times as he wondered what happened.

"We should head north," Atemu suggested looking in that direction. "It'll take about two weeks to walk to Chale Jao. Have you been there before?"

"Yes," Seto replied thinking hard as he also got to his feet. "There's not many places in that area and I was forced to stop by there a few years ago. It was odd though, before I left one of the Elders told me to take care of his son. I couldn't figure out what he meant."

"How odd," Atemu quietly murmured. He supposed the elder could have been Shimon but Shimon wasn't his father and would have no clue about Seto. Then again it _had _been 3000 years so perhaps his parents had returned and one was now an Elder. Now more then ever Atemu wanted to return home to find out all that has happened while he had been away.

"Yami are you okay?" Seto asked breaking into Atemu's thoughts. For some reason Seto had found himself concerned when the cat demon had grown quiet. Although Seto hated to admit it the cat demon was kind of sexy in his human form.

"I'm fine," Atemu replied reassuring the demon hunter with a small smile. "I was just thinking about what home must be like by now."

"Will we also be protected from Bakura's family if we go there? You did try to kill their son and they might not want to follow the rules if they're after revenge."

"I don't think they'll give us problems," Atemu replied with a thoughtful look on his face. "If anything they were probably disappointed that I didn't finish the job. Bakura's parents really didn't like him."

"I can see why."

"He's not that bad. Bakura was my only friend growing up," Atemu quietly admitted hanging his head in embarrassment. "My parents abandoned me in the village so all the other children made fun of me. Especially an annoying brat called Claudius. They also all thought I was weak for only being able to transform into a cat."

"But I saw you become a leopard."

"No one knew until the day before I left to go to the Pool of Destiny. I was fed up with Claudius and attacked him. After that everyone knew."

"Why didn't you tell anyone before that?" Again Seto found himself strangely curious in the cat demon.

"Because I was scared. Animal morphing demons are only supposed to have on anime form. I was afraid they would shun me if they knew. Some big and powerful demon I turned out to be." Atemu kept his head low so the wouldn't to look at the demon hunter.

Taking a few steps, Seto walked over to Atemu and placed his hand under the cat demon's chin so he could raise it and once again looking into Atemu's crimson eyes. "You have more power then you can possible image. Never forget that."

"You really think so?"

"Yes." Turning away from the cat demon Seto began walking north. "Any of your kind is hard to kill. That shows you their power."

"That's not exactly flattering," Atemu grumbled while narrowing his eyes as he began following the demon hunter.

"It should be," Seto replied not looking back at Atemu. "Does it not feel good knowing you're a from a more powerful race then anyone else on this planet?"

"No." That reply surprised Seto. "Even after what humans did to Messalina she only wanted peace between the two races. She could have easily killed the humans who hunted her but she didn't. Demons are not supposed to use their powers against humans unless it's for defense. Of course just like humans some demons have evil intentions."

Satisfied with the cat demon's answer Seto continued walking along the path. The demon hunter barely flinched when he felt the lightweight of Atemu's cat body settle upon his shoulders.

* * *

Bakura stretched as he woke, his body stiff from his long rest. Reaching up, Bakura checked his wounded shoulder. It was healing nicely with no infection but it would be a few more days until it was back to normal. 

Ignoring the tanned blond still sleeping next to him, Bakura rolled out of bed and stretched once again. Bakura was fast becoming bored in the town where he had sought out shelter. He had been there four days already waiting for his shoulder to heal with little to do except spend time with the sexy blond.

Atemu's attack had surprised him but at the same time Bakura was glad to see that the kitten still had some fight left in him. Defeating Atemu would now be a challenge that Bakura was looking forward to.

Dressing, Bakura quickly gather his things and left the room. He was finished with the town. He would miss the male that had shared his bed for the past few nights but nevertheless it was time to move on. Bakura knew that the kitten and the hunter could be anywhere at the moment.

"Here kitty, kitty, kitty," Bakura tauntingly called out into the hazy fog of the morning air. Moving through the thick fog Bakura began his quest once again.

* * *

The days quickly went by for the demon hunter and his cat partner. For the most part, Atemu stayed in his cat form spending his days sleeping upon Seto's shoulders as the tall burnet marched along the path. At night, when Seto was asleep, Atemu would morph into a human or leopard to keep a watchful eye out for predators. Seto never knew the cat demon did that and Atemu had no desire to bring forth that information just yet as he knew Seto would insist he did not need a demon watching out for him. 

Eventually the days began getting shorter, a sure sign they were reaching the northern country. As a human Seto could not travel easily in the dark, which meant the pair soon started stopping earlier in the day.

"We should be hitting snow soon," Seto commented with a small shiver. The demon hunter's home was far to the east where snow as not common, Atemu however was use to the climate and wasn't bothered by it. Currently the demon hunter was laying on his side facing away from the small black cat who was curled up against his back.

"The winter season was always fun." Rolling over, Seto was surprised to find Atemu laying next to him. It had been a week and a half since he had seen the demon in a form different from his cat one. He had almost forgotten that Yami had two additional forms. "The land would be covered in a light fluffy snow that's perfect to run and jump in. Bakura always hated the snow, he would melt as much of it as he could each day but in the morning it would all be back."

Atemu smiled at the memory. The look of horror on Bakura's face each morning had been extremely amusing. When the weather had turned warm again and the snow melted Bakura would triumphantly gloat to everyone claiming he defeated the evil snow. No matter how many years passed he would always act the same way each spring never learning his lesson.

"At least the weather is a sure sign we're heading in the right direction," Seto sighed as he shivered again. "We haven't seen a village since we left Kukai."

"Don't worry, I can find my way home," Yami reassured him along with a beaming smile.

"Even after 3000 years?"

Yami nodded his head. "Yes. Young demons of Chale Jao are required to remember the entire region in case we get lost or there's an attack on the village and we have to flee. 10000 years could past and I'd still remember the layout of the land around home."

"A handy tool," Seto murmured. "Perhaps you demons do have some intelligence."

"Thanks…I think."

"Whatever," Seto replied with a sleepy yawn. "I'm tired and am going to sleep. Do what you like since you've slept all day. Just don't bother me."

"Alright."

Atemu watched as Seto closed his eyes and still his body. Waiting a few moments Atemu eventually slid closer to Seto and wrapped his arm around the demon hunter's waist. He also buried his face into Seto's back inhaling the hunter's scent.

"What are you doing Yami?" Seto quietly asked but he did not move.

"Staying close to you for warmth. When I'm in my human form I don't gain the benefit of having fur to keep me warm."

"Did you really think I would fall for that line?" Rolling onto his back, Seto gave Yami a look.

"Yes."

"I was right with my first guess, in that you demons are dumb."

"And you need people skills!" Yami shot back as he half sat up. "I told you the truth. Moving closer to the fire isn't an option or else the sparks from the flames will hit us!"

"Yami, you're the one who needs people skills. Instead of using this lame tactic to get me into your pants you should have just said _I want you to fuck me_."

"Fine! I want to fuck me!" Atemu's annoyed crimson eyes. Over the past week and a half Atemu's desire for the demon hunter grew to extreme measures. Whenever he slept he would see the vision he had so long ago of the handsome burnet toppling him in bed. It was beginning to become unbearable being near his one true love but knowing that same person hated him.

"I would never become involved with a demon no matter how I felt," Seto hissed, his words venom.

"Why not?" Yami protested not giving up so easily. "Its just sex. Lots of people have sex just for fun!"

"There's a difference!"

"How so?" Atemu argued. Taking Seto's hand in his own, Atemu placed their joined hands over his hard cock so Seto could feel it. "All human, am I not? Why can't for one night you forget I'm a demon?"

"It's not that easy!"

"Seto…" Atemu said quieting down. Releasing Seto's hand, Atemu brought his own hand to Seto's cheek and gently stroked it. "I am not Yami the cat, I am Atemu the man. Now give me an honest reason why this night can't happen."

Once again Seto found himself mesmerized with Atemu's eyes as he stared into them. "You're a demon," he said his voice a whisper. Gone was the anger that had been moments ago.

"How so?" Atemu inquired. Bending over the demon hunter, Atemu placed his lips against Seto's mouth.

The kiss was sweet and gentle. Atemu could feel Seto's guard slipping as the kiss continued so he risked the chance of wrapping his arms around Seto's neck.

"For tonight I am human," Atemu whispered as he broke the kiss. Moving his lips downward Atemu began placing small kisses on Seto's neck.

"Atemu," Seto groaned as he wrapped his arms around the cat demon's waist. Rolling them over, Seto took control as placed a forceful and demanding kiss on Atemu's lips. Eagerly, Atemu gave into the demanding brunet as he began to moan into the blacken night.


	4. Home Sweet Home

**A/N - **Long chapter this time folks. Seriously I thought the stupid thing would never end. Big Thank You to Dukie for editing it for me. She knows how much I hate doing it and will get very lazy when it comes to editing, lol.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed.

Enjoy!

* * *

The wind blew through the trees, causing Bakura to shiver. He hated the cold and would have to head further south soon to keep warm.

For the past six days Bakura had been searching for Seto and Atemu with no clue where to look. Things were easier this time for the fire demon. Before when he began his hunt for the cat demon, Atemu had been traveling alone with no known goal for Bakura to trace. This time, however, Bakura knew that Atemu was with the demon hunter Seto Kaiba. The demon hunter was much easier to track down than one rogue demon. Everywhere Bakura went, many people were more than willing to tell him stories of the famous hunter. The current news was that the hunter wanted revenge for the death of his little brother.

"Hmm… where would they go?" Bakura wondered to himself. "Kitten is helping him so it would be somewhere Kitten knows…hmm…I wonder if the kitty finally went home…."

Bakura thought about his options. Every so often the fire demon would head home to check on his younger brother and to see if anyone had any new information on Atemu. No one had seen the cat demon but Bakura knew it would only be a matter of time before Atemu returned there. It would make sense for Atemu to finally return to Chale Jao if he was helping a demon hunter find a demon.

A growl crossed Bakura lips as he realized he was going to have to halt his plans to head to the warmer south so that he could return to his home in hopes of catching Atemu there. Bakura knew that Chale Jao would be covered in snow by now, which was something the fire demon always hated. That would be one more thing Atemu would have to pay for when Bakura finally found him.

* * *

Atemu snuggled closer to the warm naked body next to him. Atemu was peaceful and did not feel like getting up so he remained still, hoping he could get more sleep. Unfortunately Yami would not get what he wanted. 

The cat demon groaned as the body next to him rolled away. Keeping his eye clenched shut, Atemu could hear the rustle of clothing as the demon hunter dressed.

"I know you're awake. Get up! We need to be leaving soon!"

Blinking open his crimson eyes, Yami sleepily stared up at Seto, who was standing over him ready to go. With a small sigh Atemu shoved the blanket off his body so that Seto could roll it back up and put it with the rest of his equipment. Standing up, Atemu quickly dressed and was about to turn into a cat when Seto stopped him.

"About last night…you know it was just sex right? Nothing further will ever develop between us."

"I understand," Atemu replied, but he had no intentions of giving up that easily. He knew that Seto would need time to come around. They didn't have a lot of time, as Seto was a mortal man and wouldn't be around in 501 years for the demon's next mating ritual; but Yami knew in his heart that Seto would be ready when it came time for them to mate and be eternal partners in life and in death.

"Good. I just wanted to make that clear," Seto informed the small cat demon before changing the subject. "How far away from Chale Jao are we?"

"Only a few more days," Atemu promised, getting down to business and pushing the thoughts of him and Seto being mated out of his head for the time being. "Sometime today we should reach a river. We follow along that river until we reach a waterfall where Bakura and I spent a great amount of time together as children. After that we will reach Chale Jao in no time."

"Good," Seto replied, with a simple nod of his head.

* * *

Ryou bent down in the snow and scooped up a handful of the white fluffy substance. Holding the snow in the palm of his hand, Ryou summoned a gust of wind, blowing the snow everywhere. A satisfied smile appeared on Ryou's face as he watched the snow first fly through the air and then drift downwards. As Ryou's eyes traveled back to the forest floor while he continued watching the snow, he froze when he eyed two strange individuals walking along the riverbed. The two individuals stared at him and Ryou knew he had been caught using his powers by outsiders. 

Nervously, the wind demon forced a smile as he waved at the newcomers praying to the Goddess they hadn't seen much. "Hello."

"You look like Bakura," the short one with spiky hair stated as he continued to stare at Ryou.

"Oh? You know my brother?" Ryou inquired with a surprised look on his face, though he immediately relaxed, since he knew that if the pair were friends with his older brother then they probably knew he was a fire demon.

"Yes… I'm Yami and this is Seto," the tri-haired one replied. "I grew up in Chale Jao with Bakura."

"I'm Ryou. I should really be heading home too. I can feel the winds changing so there will be a storm tonight," Ryou told him. "Mind if I travel with you? It will be nice to have some company for a change."

Yami silently nodded his head, causing Ryou to beam brightly. Because of his quiet nature and the fact his brother was a known psycho, Ryou had no friends to hang out with. Glad for some company, Ryou began leading them along the river trail to the village.

"We shouldn't trust him," Seto whispered to the cat demon as they walked a safe distance behind the wind demon. "The brother of that fire demon can't be trusted."

"I disagree," Atemu whispered back with a shake of his tri-colored head. Atemu loved Seto but he knew his future mate really had to stop being judgmental of all demons they came across. "He seems different then Bakura. He seems almost sad. And he was scared when he first saw us, you could tell even though he acted like he wasn't. Bakura doesn't know how to be afraid."

"If you say so," Seto muttered.

"Is everything okay?" Ryou asked, turning back to look at them. With his white hair and clothing, Ryou easily blended in with the snow covered forest.

"I'm curious to know how old you are," Atemu said changing the subject so the young wind demon wouldn't grow suspicious.

"16."

"So you haven't made the quest to the pool yet?"

"Bakura won't let me even if I could," Ryou replied with a small shake of his head and sigh. "He's really overprotective. Last time he was here he told me to wait a few years and then he would assist me by taking me there. He claims it's too dangerous fro me to go by myself. Bakura said something bad happened when he went. That his best friend tried to kill him!"

"Imagine that," Seto grumbled, giving Yami a rude look. Yami, however, ignored the demon hunter. Instead he was curious about the recent happenings of his hometown.

"Who's on the Elder Council?" he inquired of Ryou, still thinking about what Seto had told him earlier about an elder telling the demon hunter to take care of his son.

"Elders Akunumkanon, Shimon and Livia," Ryou promptly answered, leaving Yami to frown. That was impossible. Those were the same elders that had been around when Yami had been a demon child.

"Is something wrong?" Seto quietly asked Yami, with a slight look of concern on his face.

"It's nothing," Yami replied, with a small shake of his head. "Something I was hoping for turned out to be false."

Seto's concerned eyes remained on Yami as they continued to walk. After 15 minutes of walking along the snow-covered path, the trio reached the outskirts of the demon village.

"Home…" Atemu trailed off as he stared at Chale Jao. Running forward through the snow, hurrying too fast, Yami stumbled and fell face first into the fluffy cold substance.

"Hello Atemu." Looking up, the cat demon found the elder Akunumkanon standing over him.

"Elder Akunumkanon," Atemu said as he crawled to his knees and hung his head in shame. Around them the other villagers paused in what they were doing to stare at the return of the tri-haired cat demon who had turned on them so long ago.

"Come along Atemu, the Elder's Council wishes to speak to you."

Akunumkanon turned around, walking away as Yami slowly stood in order to follow the other demon.

"I'm coming too!" Seto's voice rang out, surprising the villagers who had been watching. Both Atemu and Akunumkanon paused in their steps as they turned their heads to look back at the demon hunter.

"Very well but you must wait outside. Non-demons are not permitted into our sacred halls."

"That's fine."

* * *

"I see…" Akunumkanon's deep voice rumbled throughout the main chambers of the Elder's meeting place. "Are you positive?"

"Yes." Atemu was kneeling before the three elders. He had told them his story and now he was awaiting his punishment for looking into the pool twice and for trying to kill Bakura.

A fire from the fireplace flickered next to them making it the only sound in the room while Atemu waited for Akunumkanon to continue on with the meeting.

"Very well…although you did break a rule by looking into the Pool of Destiny more then once when it's forbidden; but that is a minor offence."

"What about what I did to Bakura?"

"You were protecting your mate. That is perfectly legal in our culture. Besides, whatever you do in the outside world does not matter to us."

"So that's it?"

"Yes," Akunumkanon said, with a wave of his hand. "This was an incident that happened a long time ago even for us. As long as you're in this village Bakura will be forbidden to touch you. Beware though because he can still attain revenge on you outside of Chale Jao."

"Thank you Great Ones," Atemu replied as he bowed his head before quickly getting to his feet. The cat demon was about to turn around and leave when Akunumkanon's voice stopped him.

"Wait a moment Atemu. I want to speak to you privately for a few minutes."

Surprised, Atemu nodded his head while the other two elders left the room. "What is it Sir?"

"Come sit by me," Akunumkanon said patting the wooden floor next to him. Stepping up, Atemu joined the elder on the stage and sat cross-legged on the floor next to Akunumkanon.

"What is it Elder Akunumkanon?" Atemu asked again, wanting to get their conversation over with so he could rejoin Seto.

"I wanted to speak to you about your future mate, the demon hunter."

"Seto has his reasons to dislike demons!" Atemu quickly protested, worried that he would be shunned again by the demon community for his choice in a mate. "He's made so much progress in the short time I've known him. It will not be a problem to turn him when the time comes!"

"Just remember the hunter has many personal inner demons. You only have a year to work with him."

"I understand, but I don't think the goddess would have allowed me to alienate myself from the other demons if Seto and I were not meant to be together!"

"But she also might be punishing you for looking into the pool twice," Akunumkanon quietly warned. "I don't want to see you hurt, Atemu. And I want you to know I'm here for you if never need to talk."

"I understand. You've always been so kind to me."

"You deserved it."

"No I didn't," Atemu replied with a small laugh and a shake of his head. "I was nothing but trouble as a child."

"I blame myself for that. You needed adult supervision that Shimon couldn't provide. He was often far too strict with you, which caused you to rebel."

"Shimon did his best," Atemu argued, not liking where the conversation was headed. He would always think highly of Shimon for what he did for him. "He took me in when no one else did. It wasn't you who abandoned me."

"You know Atemu…the reason why you got off so easily with your actions was my wife was shown something when she looked into the Pool of Destiny that both she and I have always regretted doing. Although we didn't try to kill anyone, we did do something just as bad."

"What?"

"We gave up our child, as it was what my wife saw us doing."

"…I see…" Atemu said, putting two and two together. He looked down at the floor so he wouldn't have to look at Akunumkanon. "Why did you not tell me before?"

"Because you were too young before and then gone for so long. I know that's not a very good excuse but that's what happened."

"You were the one who told Seto to look after me. Why?"

"Yes that was I. It was what I saw in the Pool of Destiny when I looked. I saw the two you of together. For the longest time I didn't know what it meant. Then I had you and watched you group up. There was little doubt in my mind that you were one of the people from my vision. When the demon hunter arrived here a while ago I recognized him immediately as the other one from my vision."

Atemu looked up again. "Why do I feel as if my entire life was determined long before I was born?"

"Because it was. It was not a coincidence that you possess two powers. It was not a coincidence that you were seen in so many visions of the future. You were meant for great things. But what those things are I do not know yet."

"What if all this was not for me though?" Atemu wondered, his mind thinking of Seto waiting for him outside. "What if I'm only supposed to help the one who is meant for great things?"

Seto's arms were crossed over his chest as he stood with his back up against the building where Yami was inside. He suspiciously eyed all those around him who went about their daily business. His hand was close to the hilt of his sword, ready to use it if someone bothered him.

Seto wondered what could be taking the cat demon so long. He suspected Yami had originally had to tell them his side of the story that happened 3000 years ago, but then two of the elders had left an hour ago leaving Yami still inside.

"Hey."

Shooting his head sideways, a small smile crossed Seto's lips before the frown returned as he watched Yami hop down the snow covered steps.

"So what's going on?"

"Well everything is fine between me and the Elders now. Even Bakura will be in trouble if he tries to harm us here."

"That's good to know. At least we won't have to worry about him for a while. But there's something else. I can see it in your eyes."

"Oh… I found out Elder Akunumkanon is my real father…."

"Congratulations. That must be a heavy load off your mind."

Seto surprised Yami with his words. "I guess," he replied, with a small shrug of his shoulders. "I haven't thought about them since I was a child. Finding them was my life's goal back then. Now…all I feel is nothing when it comes to them. All along they were here but let me be alone."

"You're being too hard on them. I'm sure they had their reasons."

"They did." Yami absentmindedly nodded his head. "But I'm beginning to think their reasons were more wrong than right."

Seto remained quiet waiting for the cat demon to continue. Throughout the trip he had begun to think of Yami as a friend. Plus the cat demon was his only ally in the village full of demons.

"Twice now someone has followed what the Pool of Destiny has shown them. My parents gave me away and I almost killed Bakura. Neither of these were honorable paths we followed. I'm beginning to think we got something wrong somewhere."

"Yami, by now you should know me well. I can be patient when I need to be, even if it means my brother's killer will live for another few years. Death comes quickly for those who rush into things. I think you should be patient too; in the end what you believe will pull through for you."

"Thanks Seto," Yami replied giving the demon hunter a bright smile. He was discovering that Seto was always full of surprises and he could feel the demon hunter warming up to him.

"So it's true!" an annoying, whiney voice sneered.

"Claudius…" Yami growled, instantly recognizing the voice. Turning his head away from Seto, Yami immediately found the earth demon.

"You're back I see. And with a human demon hunter no less, one who now knows that this is a demon village thanks to you."

"Back off Claudius! You were running for your life the last time you tried messing with me! "

"Can't use your powers in the village Atemu. You're a little shrimp who no way can stand up to me in a fair fight."

"I can," Seto declared, pulling his sword free and stepping in front of Yami, blocking the cat demon from Claudius' view. The tip of Seto's blade touched Claudius' chest so that only the layer of leather clothing the earth demon wore protected him from the cold metal. "Want to try taking me on?"

"Such a violent human," Claudius hissed as he turned away and began walking away. "Oh yes, and stay away from my student. He's already going to be punished for his actions this afternoon."

"What are you talking about?" Yami yelled, demanding to know what Claudius was talking about. He didn't trust the earth demon one bit. Yami stepped out from behind Seto so he could see what was happening again.

"Why Ryou of course! The naughty boy needs a punishment for talking to you two earlier today." Claudius' laughter rang throughout the village as he disappeared from Yami and Seto's sight.

"Impossible! Bakura and Claudius hate each other. No way would Bakura ever allow Claudius to teach his little brother if he's as over protective as Ryou said he was."

"Maybe Claudius was lying to make you angry," Seto suggested with a shrug of his shoulders and lowered his sword. As far as Seto was concerned he wasn't involved. "Either way it's not our problem."

"But you heard Claudius! He's going to punish Ryou!"

"I repeat, it's not our problem. We're here to find the demon who killed my brother."

"Would you say that if we were human?"

Seto sighed as he looked into Yami's angry crimson eyes, although he knew the anger wasn't directed at him. "Fine. Let's go ask around if it's true. But then we start questioning them about that demon."

"Alright. I know just the person to ask, too," Yami replied, looking much happier already, and Seto wondered when he had started to allow Yami's happiness to become important to him.

"Who?"

"My old teacher. Mahaado."

* * *

"Great; we spend weeks trying to get to this village only to leave again, walking through piles of snow to try and find some demon when there were plenty of demons back at the village who probably knew." 

"Relax," Yami said with a roll of his eyes, reassuring the demon hunter. "Those other demons will be suspicious of me still because of what I did and may not be willing to sell out Claudius to me. Besides Mahaado always trains in the same spot and those demons who we did ask said he was out training his latest student."

While Seto and Yami continued to talk they were unaware they were being watched by unseen eyes. As they walked along the snowy path, Yami was caught off guard as a river otter slid down a huge bank of snow and crashed into the cat demon's legs. For the second time that day, Yami toppled to the ground and landed in snow.

"Ah ha! Fear the wrath of the river otters!"

To Yami's surprise a young tanned girl with wild brunette hair triumphantly stood over him.

"Very good Mana," came Mahaado's frustrated sigh as he walked out from where he had been hiding in the woods. "But instead of celebrating, you should make sure your enemy is actually out cold before your victory dance. You also might want to get it straight who's an enemy and who's an ally." Bending over, Mahaado helped Yami to his feet. "Hello Atemu. Sorry about Mana. She's worse than you were."

"Oh so you're the legendary Atemu!" Mana happily grinned, clapping her hands together. "I grew up on stories about all the mischief you and Bakura caused when you were my age."

"I'm flattered," Yami dryly replied as he went to stand by Seto, partly for protection from the girl. He then turned his attention back to his former teacher. "We need to talk. I have a question about Ryou."

"What about him?"

"Is it true Claudius is Ryou's teacher?"

Mahaado heavily sighed as he avoided the look the cat demon was giving him. Mana's head shot back and forth between the two demons as she wondered what was going on. Seto meanwhile silently stood at Yami's side, staying out of everything. "It's true."

"Why? Everyone knows Claudius and Bakura hate each other."

"Everyone also knows that Bakura is a psychopath. No one would train Ryou for they feared what Bakura would do to them if he became upset with their training style. Claudius was the only one who volunteered."

"Does Bakura know?"

"Of course not! Bakura never stays long enough when he visits to find out and no one is going to tell him when he's here."

"This isn't right. Bakura should know."

"I agree but I'm not an elemental demon. There's little I can do."

"If Bakura knew he would stay and train Ryou himself!"

"Again, I agree."

"Then why didn't you tell him?"

"Because Bakura would never listen to anyone who had close ties with you. He would scowl at both Shimon and I whenever he saw us. Look, I don't like it either Atemu. Ryou is a sweet kid and I've seen with my own eyes the way Claudius treats Ryou. He yells, beats him and always tells Ryou that's he's a loser and that he's stupid."

"Thank you for your honesty," Yami replied with a bow of his head. "It's good to see you again Mahaado."

"You too Atemu. You should visit more often."

"Eventually I will." Turning around Yami began walking back to Chale Jao with Seto silently following him.

"Bye!" Mana called after the pair but neither of them paid attention to her. For long moments they continued to walk in the silence until Seto finally broke it by speaking.

"So now what is your plan?"

"I don't know," Yami replied with a sigh of frustration. "I feel like I'm backed into a corner. I've only just gotten back and already I'm becoming involved in a situation that doesn't concern me."

"If you don't stick up for the little guy then who will?"

Yami sighed again as Seto's words sunk in. He supposed at one time Seto had been the little guy and if someone had stuck up for him and Mokuba then the younger Kaiba brother would have still been alive today.

"You're right. I just need time to rethink my strategy. I guess if things become too difficult I could always ask my father to intervene." Referring to Akunumkanon as his father was still weird to Yami but he was becoming more used to the idea. "Claudius wouldn't know yet about my background. I have a feeling only the Elders and myself know about it."

"Good. That's the determination that I like to see from you."

A smile crossed Yami's mouth and he look up at Seto to find the demon hunter grinning as well. Yami just knew that things would work out between them.

* * *

With the land deep into the winter season, night came early to the small village. Both Seto and Yami spent the evening at Akunumkanon's home so that Yami could get to know his parents a little more. His mother had been deeply worried when Yami did not return 3000 years ago and both she and his father were anxious to here of his tales. Shimon was there as well, as he was the only form of a parent that Yami had known for so long. Seto also was curious to listen to Yami's stories, finding himself once again intrigued by the cat demon. 

Eventually the candlelight burned away, indicating it was time for bed. At first Yami was concerned where they would sleep. Chale Jao did have a small inn but the new turn of events made Yami wonder if he should stay at his parents' place. Yami's fears however were soon defeated when Shimon suggested to both him and Seto that it was time to head home.

The Elder had given Yami a wink as the cat demon and Seto retreated to Yami's old bedroom. The bedroom was a nice size. As an Elder, Shimon had a nice sized home even though he was the only one who lived there most of the time. The bed however was an entirely different story. The bed, which was normally meant for one person, would only fit the two if them if they cuddled close together. Naturally this made Yami very happy.

"Maybe I should find somewhere else to sleep."

"No, it's okay," Yami reassured him as he grabbed Seto's hand and began tugging him towards the bed. "There's more than enough room for both of us."

Yami tried giving Seto an innocent smile but it came across as something more of a wild grin, leaving the demon hunter to suspiciously eye the cat demon. Nevertheless, against his better judgment, Seto decided to trust Yami anyway.

The pair stripped naked at Yami's insistence. They then climbed into the bed together with Yami laying half on top of the demon hunter.

"Good night Seto," Yami whispered while flashing Seto one more smile.

"Night," came Seto's grumble of a reply as he both closed his eyes, needing some sleep. In the dark room, Yami watched as his love fell into a peaceful slumber.

* * *

The wind howled outside keeping Yami awake. Next to him Seto remained asleep unaffected by the storm that was happening outside. 

Yami was glad that the demon hunter was able to sleep so well. Often when they were sleeping out in the wilderness Yami would stay up watching Seto toss and turn in his sleep. Yami thought it fitting that Seto found comfort in a village of demons; it was as if the demon hunter was already at ease with his future kin. Yami was glad, as he hoped one day to settle down in Chale Jao with Seto by his side. He wanted to live in peace with his mate; but peace would not come that night for the cat demon.

Rolling out of bed, the bell around Yami's neck jingled as he stood and dressed. Placing a hand over the bell to halt the sound, Yami quietly walked over to the window and peered outside.

Shimon's home was near the edge of the village and even through the mass of falling snow Yami could make out the tall trees that stood some meters away.

Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, Yami begun turning away when out of the corner of his eye he thought he saw a flicker of a light.

With a frown on his face, Yami once again turned back to the window but saw nothing. Nevertheless he knew he saw something moments ago.

Yami debated about what he should do. He could sense something was up and if that light was from a traveler they could be in need of help if they were stuck in the storm.

"_If you don't stick up for the little guy then who will?"_

Seto's voice came back to Yami as he heavily sighed. He couldn't ignore the situation.

Yami hurried through the home, racing to the front door. He knew he had to find out what that light had been.

The cold wind whipped around Yami's body as he stepped outside, sinking up to his knees in the freshly fallen snow.

Ignoring the rules of the village, Yami transformed into a cat and lightly bounded on top of the snow as he hurried towards where he saw the light. As he reached the trees he saw more light, so he sped up the pace.

* * *

"Die bastards!" Bakura yelled in frustration as he used his fire powers to melt the snow in front of him, clearing a path that he could walk along as he headed towards Chale Jao. 

Bakura was not pleased. He had arrived out of his fire portal to find the place in the middle of a snowstorm.

"Bakura?"

"Kitten!" Bakura hissed recognizing the voice. The fire demon whipped his head around searching for the cat demon but finding nothing in the dark night. With a frustrated growl, Bakura began throwing flames in every direction hoping he would hit Yami.

"Stop it! I need to talk to you about something!"

"Why don't you come out so we can talk?" Bakura suggested, holding a fireball in the palm of his hand. Bakura had no plans on talking but he wanted to draw the cat demon out in the open so he would get a clear shot.

"It's about Ryou."

The fireball began fading in Bakura's hand. He didn't expect that. "What about him?"

"Are we going to talk?"

"Fine, fine." Bakura waved out the fire in his hand and waited for the cat demon to show himself.

Yami gracefully dropped down from the three he had been hiding in, lightly landing on his feet in front of Bakura. Earlier, when he had been running towards the light, he had recognized the fire demon as soon as he got close enough, and scurried up the nearest tree, knowing he would have to take Bakura by surprise.

"Talk."

"Claudius is teaching Ryou," Yami said, getting down to business. When dealing with Bakura, Yami knew not the make the fire demon wait, especially when he wanted to kill you.

"Not going to fall for that," Bakura replied as he began reforming the fireball in his hand.

"Why would I lie? Why would I confront you when you had no clue I was here? I could have stayed hidden until you passed."

The wind whipped around the two demons as they stared each other down; the trees offering them little shelter from the storm.

"You have a point," Bakura finally muttered quietly and the fireball once again disappeared. "Why would Claudius agree to teach Ryou?"

"Power. He wants to hurt you through Ryou. I talked to Mahaado about it, and he told me what Claudius does to Ryou. Claudius told me himself he would be punishing Ryou for talking to me this afternoon."

"You better be telling the truth, Kitten."

"I am. Check on Ryou if you don't believe me."

"Don't think I won't!"

Satisfied his job was done, Yami transformed into a leopard and scampered off before Bakura could turn his fire attacks on him again.

Bakura meanwhile was tired of the cold, wet snow so he decided to go against the rules of the village. Using his powers Bakura summoned a ring of fire around himself and disappeared into the flames.

Moments passed before Bakura once again reappeared, this time in front of his parent's home. Transporting directly into the home was far too dangerous, as the flames would light the wooden home on fire, so the fire demon had to settle for appearing outside it.

Wasting no time, Bakura kicked opened the door and stalked through the building towards Ryou's room in the back of the one-floored home.

"Wake up!" he declared, kicking open Ryou's door as well. A torch of fire was held in Bakura's left hand, lighting up the room so he could see his younger brother lying in his bed.

"Kura? Ryou sleepily asked as he sat up. In the fire's light Bakura could easily see the black eye Ryou was sporting.

"That bastard!" Bakura hissed as he turned around and stormed away, not allowing Ryou to say anything else.

Heading back outside into the cold snow and howling winds, Bakura quickly made his way across the village to Claudius' home.

Rage erupted throughout Bakura as he eyed the house. The fire demon summoned a huge wall of fire around the perimeter of the building; all four walls quickly becoming engulfed in flames.

Claudius' screams were heard from inside the building while the other villagers began to investigate the blaze. Amidst the chaos Bakura easily slipped away unnoticed. With only Atemu and Ryou seeing him that night, no one would blame him for the crime.

From Shimon's living room Yami watched the fire. The Elder had already left to inspect what had happened, leaving Yami alone and Seto still asleep in Yami's room.

"What's going on?"

The cat demon turned his head to watch Seto enter the room. The demon hunter had only taken time to pull on his tight black leather pants before rushing out to find what all the commotion was about. Yami was practically drooling at the sight of the demon hunter's bare chest, hair tousled from sleep and piercing blue eyes that were already wide awake and alert.

"Nothing. Just a fire."

"You did something didn't you."

"Ryou won't be bothered anymore."

"Good. Plus that means there's one less demon in the world that I have to kill."

"I hope you don't really mean that," Yami replied as Seto walked over to stand beside him. Standing side by side, the two partners continued watching the fire as a water demon unsuccessfully tried to put out the flames.

"I do," Seto confirmed. "He deserved to die. All he has ever done was cause sorrow to people."

"I guess you're right."

"I'm always right."

"Although I would have liked to have seen the look on his face when he found out who my father was."

"You can dream about it."

Placing an arm around Yami's shoulders, Seto guided the cat demon back to his bedroom where they both settled down for some more sleep.


	5. Pegasus

**A/N** - I know, I know, it's been a long time for an update. This story was stalled for a while, then I got busy with _Nine Lives_ since it's easy to write. Lame excuse but that's what happened.

Here's the next chapter finally though. I really don't know how Malik keeps on popping up in this story. He wasn't even suposed to show up until the the third story. Damn sexy bastard. Poor Kura, he's really going to be getting it now.

* * *

Because of the weather, traveling was extremely difficult so Seto and Yami were trapped in Chale Jao for the time being. 

The snow hadn't stopped falling since the night Claudius died. Bakura officially arrived at the village the next morning during a memorial service for the earth demon. No one was suspicious.

For days passed with no sign of the snow stopping. Fortunately it gave both the demon hunter and the demon time to question the townspeople about the one who killed Mokuba.

However they did not like the results they were getting.

"I'll warn you now to leave it be," Akunumkanon advised. The three of them were seated around Akunumkanon's living room, warming in front of the fireplace. "I know you want revenge Young Hunter but some things are best left unresolved."

"Father?"

"Atemu I'm serious," Akunumkanon warned giving his son a look. "You both should end this quest."

"I'm afraid that's not possible," Seto replied eyeing the demon elder. "If it was your brother who was brutally murdered wouldn't you want revenge?"

"…yes. Akunadin and I have always been close, especially in our younger days…Very well Master Hunter, I will aid you the best as I can in your quest," Akunumkanon said with a heavily sigh.

"Thank you."

"The demon you seek is called Pegasus; he has the ability to transform into his namesake. 480 years ago, Pegasus was a young artist who traveled the world with his mate and wife Cynthia. While staying in a human village a fire broke out in one of the buildings; trapping two children inside. Cynthia was a water demon who used her powers to put out the blaze. The humans were outraged that a demon would try to pass as a human so they killed her despite having saved those children's lives."

"How horrible," Yami whispered in shock.

"Pegasus, who were not there at the time, killed all the villagers when he found out what happened. For two weeks he went on a rampage killing humans until he suddenly vanished. Every year on the anniversary of Cynthia's death, Pegasus returns from where he had been hiding to go on another human killing spree for two weeks. He'll then disappear again so we're unable to do anything about him."

"How come I've never heard anything about this Pegasus person before?" Yami inquired, clearly confused.

"All demon communities have been working together to keep Pegasus' actions hidden," Akunumkanon explained. "Although Pegasus was not from Chale Jao even we have done our part to conceal the murders. As for the humans they are scared to mention his name. He leaves no survivors so the human leaders also keep his actions in the dark so panic would not spread throughout their race."

"So how do we find him?" Akunumkanon's glaze fell upon the young hunter as he debated how he was going to answer that question.

"You can only find Pegasus when it's time for him to kill again. No one knows where he'll strike. It seems he just chooses a random village to attack each time. I can only provide you with the area he'll most likely attack as he has he seems to be making his way in a specific direction. I warn you however; you only have a week until the anniversary. That leaves you three weeks until Pegasus disappears for another year."

"Thank you for your help Elder," Seto quietly replied as he got to his feet. Next to him, Yami copied his actions and stood as well. "Please tell us where the place is so we can leave at once."

"Kukai," Akunumkanon softly replied.

"But that will take us two weeks to get there!" Yami protested. "If you're wrong, we'll have no time to search elsewhere."

"It's a risk we'll have to take."

Yami sadly lowered his head. "I know."

"Have faith my son. Only the Goddess has any clue what will happen."

"I know father."

"If you two will hurry it up I want to get out of here before dark."

"Go gather your things Seto. I'll say goodbye to my parents and will meet you at the edge of town."

Seto swiftly nodded his head before making a quick exit. Time was short and it would take longer traveling this time from the weather. Fortunately Seto knew a short cut where they could make up some time.

Yami gave his father and mother a hasty goodbye before rushing out into the snow. He had wanted to find Shimon before he left and say goodbye to the person who raised him as well.

"Just because I owe you one doesn't mean I've forgiven you."

Yami stopped in his tracks and turned to his left where he spied Bakura walking towards him. With each step the fire demon took, the snow under his feet would melt away.

"I know."

"Consider yourself lucky. I'm personally taking over Ryou's training so I'll be suck here for a while. Honestly I never thought I would be suck in this pathetic place again but Ryou needs me."

Yami nodded his head. "Take care of him."

"Don't tell me how to treat my brother, Kitten," the fire demon growled. "Remember, I'm the trustworthy one here, not you. All you wanted was revenge on Claudius for being an ass to you for so long."

"I could have taken out Claudius myself if this was a simple case of revenge. I really did want to help him. Unlike you, he's a nice kid," Yami replied as a small smirk on his face. He was happy when he saw Bakura return the smirk.

"Yeah that's something I'll have to work on."

"Under your tutorage he'll be insane in no time."

"Flattery will get you no where Kitten. You have a few safe years ahead of you but then I'll be back."

"I'm counting on it."

Yami scampered off. Although Bakura had insisted upon a truce he knew that the fire demon could change his mind at any moment. Besides he still had to say goodbye to Shimon and meet up with Seto so they could get going.

**

* * *

**

Yami shuddered as he paused in his steps. It was not however the chilly wind, which caused his uneasiness. It was the creepy feeling he got from the large black castle in the distance. His animal instinct told him there was something wrong with the place and he quickly wanted to leave the area.

Seto however did not share Yami's feeling of dread.

"I wonder if they could provide us with information," the demon hunter mused out loud from where he was walking in front of the cat demon. His white cloak was wrapped around his body as he attempted to keep himself warm from the wind.

For days the pair had been traveling. Seto's shortcut to Kukai lead them through an area of the land known as Doma, ruled by the king Dartz. Ever since they had entered Doma territory Yami had been overcome by the oddness in the air.

"We need to leave this land quickly," he hissed to his partner. "Something doesn't feel right."

"Odd…that's supposed to be King Dartz's castle. He's apparently one of the most honorable men in the world. His influence spreads wide so he's bound to have heard something about Pegasus."

"I don't doubt that but I still say we should quickly move along."

"Why? Because he's a human?" Seto challenged, spinning around to look at Yami with angry eyes. "You were willing to trust demons who wanted you dead, convinced me to do the same and now you won't trust a great man."

"Seto…please…you've been acting strange since we've entered these lands. What is troubling you?"

"What's troubling me is you took off in the middle of the night to confront your ex-best friend and you didn't even bother to tell me. I don't like people sneaking around behind my back."

Yami shook his head. So that's what was wrong. When they were in Chale Jao, Yami had neglected to tell the hunter that piece of information but had brought it up a few days ago while making conversation.

"Seto…I'm sorry." Reach out with a numb fingers, Yami placed his hand on top of Seto's. "I'm didn't think it was that important. Ryou is safe. That's all that matters. Kura still hates me and will be after us again at some point."

"Did you ever sleep with him? Back when you were friends…"

Yami couldn't believe what he was hearing but at the same time he was happy and a small smile crossed his lips. He could tell that the demon hunter was jealous. It was more then he could ever hope after such a short amount of time.

"No."

Seto nodded his head with satisfaction. "Good."

Yami couldn't place his finger on it but it seemed as if something else was wrong with his human friend. Nevertheless the smile remained on his face as he transformed into a cat and leaped up onto Seto's shoulders.

"Alright you win. We'll keep going," was the last thing Yami heard as his eyes drooped close. Even though he was still uneasy about their surroundings, Yami knew he was safe as long as Seto was there with him.

Reaching up with a hand, Seto scratched Yami on his head behind his ears. He then continued on his way down the snowy path towards their destination.

**

* * *

**

Days passed and the weather slowly grew warmer the further south they traveled. Yami slept most of the time, conserving his energy, riding upon Seto's shoulders.

Ironically, Pegasus' was scheduled to attack Kukai, the village where they had met. It seemed as if the village was once again fated to serve them both.

"If we're lucky Pegasus won't have attacked Kukai yet," Seto murmured to Yami was awake for once. Still though the cat demon remained in his feline forum so he could remain riding upon Seto.

Yami gave a nod of his small kitty head as he agreed with the demon hunter.

Only once upon their trip did they encounter another person. An angry tanned blond male was storming down the path in which they were walking.

"Stupid ass," the blond muttered under his breath as he kicked a stone. He however flashed Seto a bright smile when he saw the demon hunter. "Hello there! You haven't perchance have seen a sexy white-haired creature on your travels have you?"

"Only one," Seto replied after exchanging a look with the cat on his shoulders. "A man called Bakura."

"That's him!" the blond happily cried, clapping his hands with glee. "Do you know where he was headed? The rat ran out on me without a goodbye but the fool didn't realize that nobody dumps Malik and gets away with it. He's coming back with me whether he likes it or not!"

An evil smile appeared on Seto's lips. "He was heading for the village of Chale Jao in the north. Keep following this path through the Doma territory, and then take a left through the Black Forest. Keep going and you'll eventually come to Chale Jao. Bakura said he'll be spending some time there you'll easily have a shot at catching up to him."

"Thanks!" the blond happily cried before marching off.

When the blond had disappeared from their site, Yami jumped off of Seto's shoulders, transforming into a human as soon as he landed on the ground. He then gave Seto a stern look.

"That was a mean thing to do to Bakura. I'm sure he has his reason for avoiding that guy."

Seto shrugged. "Who cares as long as he stays away from you."

"I'm not going anywhere Seto."

"I don't care what you do," Seto huffed.

Quietly Yami turned back into a cat and returned to his place on the demon hunter's shoulders. They still had to get to Kukai before it was too late.

**

* * *

**

To their relief, when they arrived at Kukai, the village was still intact. There were no signs of Pegasus anywhere.

"The Demon Hunter," the quiet whisper could be heard throughout the village. Clearly they were surprised to see that the hunter was back so soon after he had left.

"Master Hunter!" a young voice cried. Turning his head Seto found the brunette girl who had nursed him back to health after the fire, running towards him.

"Hello…"

"Do you remember me Master Hunter? My name is Shizuka. I'm glad to see you and your cat are both well!"

"Thank you for your help before Shizuka."

"I was glad to help Master Hunter. What brings you back to our village? Has their been another demon sighting here?" The girl looked as if she was suddenly nervous which Seto noted in his head.

"Not yet."

Excusing himself, Seto headed towards the inn, where he checked himself into a room.

Heading up the narrow wooden staircase, which creaked with every step he took. Walking along the balcony of the second floor, the demon hunter disappeared inside his room.

Once alone Yami jumped down from Seto's shoulders and turned into his human form.

"That girl is odd," Seto muttered. He didn't know how he hadn't noticed it before. Two months ago she had seemed more normal.

"She's a demon," Yami casually replied.

"What!"

Yami shrugged. "I thought so the first time we met her but I was more concerned about you. This time I definitely know she's a demon. I can smell it."

"Do you think she's helping Pegasus?"

"No."

"You seem pretty confident."

"She's a child. Even if she were it would be because she doesn't know any better. But I don't think that is the case. She obviously knows who you are and probably knows I'm also a demon. Or at least suspects it. Everyone knows who you are and why you're a demon hunter. She wouldn't have helped us earlier if she was with Pegasus."

"We left before her father returned. Perhaps she was supposed to keep us there."

"Again I doubt it. She doesn't seem like it."

Seto narrowed his eyes at his partner. "You're too trustworthy."

"And you don't trust enough."

"It's how I survive."

"I use my abilities to survive."

"Hn."

Seto remained quiet and Yami didn't know if that was a good or bad thing. He had tired getting Seto use to the idea that a demon's powers were most useful but he wasn't sure if worked. Seto was glaring him like normal.

"Seto?"

"Turn back into a cat. I want to go talk to the girl."

"As you wish."

Following the request, Yami transformed into a cat and leaped upon Seto's shoulders.

**

* * *

**

"Master Hunter, what a surprise to see you so soon." Although her words said otherwise it was clear from the look on her face that she had been expecting them. "Please com in. I'm making some tea."

Seto walked inside the small cottage. The first thing he saw as a table with three teacups on it. Shizuka was bent over the table filling the cups.

"Please have a seat."

Seto sat down at one of the four chairs and Yami hopped own from his shoulders, landing gracefully on the tabletop.

"Wouldn't you be more comfortable in your other form?"

Jumping to a chair Yami transformed and glared at her with his crimson eyes. Although he still didn't think she was with Pegasus he didn't like people knowing about his disguise. "So you know about me."

"Yes."

"Where are your parents? We would like to speak to them," Seto interjected.

"My mother is dead and my father is out hunting. He won't be back for a few days."

"Interesting…" the demon hunter murmured.

"He doesn't know anything though," Shizuka quickly replied. "He doesn't even know about me."

"Just what are you getting at?" Seto demanded to know.

"Her father is not a demon," Yami quietly told him all while keeping his eyes on the girl.

Shizuka nodded her head. "My birth father was killed before I was born. Fate had different plans for him. Devastated my mother left the demon community. My current father found us and took us in. My mother died not long after that so my father adopted me. He never knew about my mother and mine abilities."

"And what are those abilities?"

"I can turn into a mouse. It may not seem like much but there are lots of places which are only big enough for a mouse."

"I'm very sorry about your family," Yami quietly told her.

"I still have my father," Shizuka replied giving Yami a brave smile. "I'm also supposed to have an older brother somewhere. He had a falling out with my parents long before I was born. My mother said his name was Jounouchi. You haven't heard about a demon called Jounouchi have you?"

Both Yami and Seto shook their heads. "No. I'm sorry."

"Well if you ever find him, tell him Shizuka says 'Hi'."

"We will."

"Do you know about Pegasus?" Seto finally asked. He had remained quiet until then allowing Shizuka and Yami to talk.

"Only a little," she admitted. "Two years ago my father took me on a business trip with him. When we arrived at the village with our goods to sell, we found the place in ruins. There was only one survivor we found. He claimed a monster attacked them from the sky. We visited neighboring villages to warn them but we were always too late. My father forbids me to every bring it up because of what happened was so horrifying."

"Wait. How do you know about Pegasus?" Yami asked her. "I'm a demon too and hadn't heard about him until a few weeks ago."

"My mother told me his story. She always said despite what happened to the Goddess and Pegasus we shouldn't hold it against all humans."

"Your mother was very wise."

"I know. Thank you."

"Is there anything else you can tell us?" Seto was getting impatient with the visit.

"I'm sorry, but that is all I know."

"Thank you for your time then."

Both Seto and Yami rose and they quickly made their retreat. For now they would get some rest and begin the hunt for Pegasus that night.


	6. Can You Hear Me Now?

"What are you going to do when this is all over?" Yami asked. Both he and Seto were seated on a fallen log outside the city where they could watch it from a safe distance. Although the air was chilly, the two barely noticed it having come from a far worst climate.

"When Pegasus is dead," the cat demon clarified when Seto did not answer. "Will you keep hunting demons? Will you go home somewhere and live our a normal life? What?"

"I don't know," came the small murmur of a reply. "Home for a while I guess. Visit Mokuba's grave. Why?"

"Could I come with you then?"

"Why?" The hunter asked in surprise.

"I want to pay my respects, if it's alright with you."

"You're a demon, just like Pegasus."

"Hasn't your time in Chale Jao taught you anything?" Yami inquired. "Not all demons are bad. When will you start believing that?"

"And what about the one who aren't good? Like your friend Bakura," Seto sneered at the mention of the fire demon's name. "They're no better than Pegasus. How many Mokuba's have they killed in their life times?"

"Bakura's not like that," Yami argued feeling the need to defend his ex-best friend.

"He tried to kill me."

"Only because I was with you. Besides…you're hardly innocent."

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Only that you could take most demons one on one in a fair fight. Given the chance you could defeat Bakura if you went into the battle with a game plan. Kura hates water. Knowing that you'd set up a trap. Get him wet enough and he won't be able to summon flames at all."

"Are you telling me this so I'll finish what you started?"

Yami narrowed his eyes. "Of course not! Bakura wants me dead, not the other way around."

"Which is why this whole thing started when you tried to kill him."

"Stop being an ass," Yami snapped. Standing up he walked a few feet away and leaned against a tree keeping his back to the demon hunter. He flinched slightly when he felt Seto place a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry."

Yami turned around and rested his back against the tree trunk. His arms were crossed over his chest as he glared at the brunet. "I'm trying to help you."

"I know. I'm no good with people. You're the first friend I've had since Mokuba died. After that I've only thought about revenge. It's weird having a friend again, especially one who is a demon."

Yami flashed Seto a brilliant smile. "Thank you for thinking of me as a friend." Standing on his tiptoes, Yami gave the demon hunter a quick kiss on the lips.

"We don't have time for this," Seto quietly said against Yami's lips. "We need to keep a watch out for Pegasus."

"I know."

Turning back around Yami comfortably leaned against the brunet who wrapped his arms around Yami's waist and rested his chin on top of the cat demon's head.

Together they silently watched the village for the rest of the night.

**

* * *

**

The two naked bodies laid side by side in the bed, snuggled together under the blankets.

Pegasus had not appeared that night. When dawn broke the pair retreated back to the room at the inn for some sleep. They were less concerned about a daytime attack, although with Pegasus anything was possible. However, the villagers were awake during the day so they would hear the screams if the demon attacked.

A pounding on the door woke both of them.

Yami quickly transformed into a cat while Seto pulled on his pants. Making sure Yami's clothes were out of sight, Seto hurried over to the door, where the pounding continued and yanked it open. He frowned when he saw the blond traveler on the other side.

His cream colored tunic was brunt around the edges and he was covered in mood. His long blond hair was also covered in mud with the tips of his locks also singed.

"You're the one who was headed to Chale Jao." '_What was his name?' _"What are you doing here?"

"_You're_ the demon hunter?"

"Answer the question."

_'Malik! His name is Malik!'_ Seto shook his head and quickly looked back at Yami who was seated on a wooden chair watching intently. He could have sworn he had just heard Yami's voice, but that was impossible since Yami was still a cat.

Turning back to the blond, Malik was busy rambling on.

"Well…about a day after we met, I decided to take a detour and stop at a village I knew. I wanted to visit some friends there and needed to gather supplies if I was going to travel all the way to that village to find Bakura. The place was completely destroyed by the time I got there. I made my way south again and the next village I came across also was destroyed but this time I saw it happen.

"You saw it?"

Malik's head bobbed. "It was a white horse with wings, who did it. The people didn't stand a chance. I hid until the thing disappeared and tried looking for survivors but there were none. I hurried on and eventually arrived here. Upon hearing my tale the villagers told me about you and where I could find you."

"Allow me to finish dressing. I would like to speak to you some more about the creature you saw. Meet me in a few minutes at the tavern where we can continue our conversation."

Malik nodded his head and quickly hurried off. As soon as the door was close Seto turned around to speak to Yami who was back to normal.

"He's coming this way."

Seto nodded his head, deciding it was best not to mention hearing Yami's voice inside his head.

The pair quickly dressed and hurried to the tavern where Malik was waiting for them.

"How long ago was the last attack?" Seto asked upon sitting down at the small table at the back of the room. Yami hopped from Seto's shoulders to his lap where he eyed Malik with his creepy red eyes. Malik tried ignoring those eyes.

"Two days ago."

"I suspect he'll be here soon then."

"You have to do something! All these people will die!"

"I will but I'll need your help."

Malik paled slightly; He was a lover, not a fighter. "What can I do?"

"There's a girl in this village by the name Shizuka. Find her and I want the two of you to work together to evacuate this village. I also need to know more about this creature. You're the only person I've found who's willing to speak. The other's are too scared, fearing Pegasus will return to finish them off."

"He dive bombs out of the sky attacking people with his front hooves before flying high up again for another attack. In panic the people run, trampling over those who fall. The fires are started by the humans in an attempt to hide under the smoke and drive him away. They only accomplish in killing more of their kind and burning down their village. With his flight abilities that thing herded them so they stay inside the village. Most end up burning alive."

"We're a sitting target then," Seto concluded. "The bridge is the only way out of town so he'll have an easy time keeping everyone inside the walls of the town. Go now and find Shizuka. Get as many people out of here as possible."

"Alright."

Malik drowned the rest of his ale, needing the alcohol and then hurried off. Standing up, Seto carried Yami in his arms out of the tavern and towards a small ally where they could not be seen.

Jumping from Seto's arms, Yami turned human. "What's the plan?"

"We need to bring Pegasus down to the ground. I'll need you stationed on the rooftops. While I distract him with arrows, I'll need you to pounce on him in your leopard form. Attack his wings, anything to get him down."

"Won't he see me and suspect something's up?"

"That's why I need you to remain a cat for as long as possible. Just act like a scared, trapped kitty and he'll think nothing of it."

"What of the villagers? What if Pegasus doesn't attack knowing no one is here?"

Seto deeply sighed. "That won't be an issue. There's too many people here to evacuate everyone and I'm sure even if we could, some would insist on staying."

"What else?"

"I'll select two buildings to set ablaze. It'll help conceal Pegasus' vision."

"Malik said that doesn't work."

Seto gave Yami a sly smile. "That's because they probably set any thing on fire. I plan on watching the skies to know what direction he's attacking form and light the fires near there."

"Same Kura still wasn't after us. We could use his help with the fire."

"Leave that to me. Humans are just as capable to lighting things on fire."

Yami nodded his head.

"I need you to now go and scout out the rooftops. Fine a place you like best preferably near the center of the village."

"Alright."

Transforming into a cat, Yami scooted from the ally. He knew they didn't have much time until Pegasus got there.

"What an adorable kitty!"

Yami froze. Turning his head, he eyed a man walking towards him. The man was obviously rich. He wore clothes dyed red where the villagers wore rather plain robes and tunics. His silver shoulder length hair was neat and styled so it fell over his left eye instead of being the normal heap of mess that the other villagers had.

"Meow."

Crouching down, the man petted Yami's back. Yami remained still hoping the man would leave soon. He had too much to do to bother with some human.

The man however had other plans as he picked up the furry body. Yami tensed; he recognized the scent of a demon.

"Leave now while you still can," the man whispered into Yami's kitten ears. He then dropped the black cat to the ground allowing Yami to watch wide-eyed as the man strolled off.

_'Pegasus?' _He wondered.

Forgetting about his orders, Yami scurried off to find Seto. To his horror he found the demon hunter speaking to the man he believed to Pegasus.

_'Seto!'_

**

* * *

**

_'Seto!'_

Seto shook his head swearing he had heard Yami's voice again. It sounded panicky and urgent but Seto ignored it; he was just imaging things. Instead he turned his attention back to the man in front of him, a wealthy traveler. The man had stopped him a few minutes ago and claimed he had information on the demon known as Pegasus.

Before he could question the man further, the jingling of a bell distracted him. Knowing that it was Yami, Seto turned his head to look for his cat partner and spotted the demon rushing towards them.

Reaching them, Yami grabbed a hold of Seto's cloak with his mouth and attempt to tug the demon hunter away.

"Yami?"

'That's Pegasus!' 

"What?"

Snapping his head back around, Seto saw that the man was gone. Picking up Yami, Seto carried him back to their room at the inn so they could talk.

"That was Pegasus! I'm sure of it!"

"I know I heard you the first time."

Yami blinked. "Huh?"

"Before when you showed up," Seto clarified before narrowing his eyes at the shorter man. "Why didn't you tell me before you can talk telepathically when you're in your cat form? I thought we decided not to keep secrets from each other."

"But I can't do that," Yami replied with a shake of his head.

"I _heard_ you!"

The words sunk in. Walking over to the bed, Yami sat down. He had heard about demons having a telepathic link before but it was extremely rare. Only a mated pair who had bonded so closely would have the ability to speak with their minds. It would have been impossible for Seto to have heard him. The demon hunter had to be losing it under the stress of finding Pegasus.

"Seto…after we defeat Pegasus you really need to take a break."

"I'm not crazy," Seto replied giving Yami a dirty look. "This isn't the first time it's happen either. Even before Mokuba and our parents died I would occasionally hear a voice calling out my name while asleep. Today I began hearing that voice again and realized that all along it was your voice I was hearing."

"Seto, that's impossible. I don't have that ability. Only two demons so closely connected can have that ability. There hasn't even been a record of two demons having that power in 5000 years."

"I know what I heard."

"Well we could test it…" Yami offered. "See if it works…"

"Alright."

_'Seto can you hear me?'_ Yami watched Seto's face for any sign but found none. "I guess not."

Seto shook his head. "Try as a cat."

Yami sighed but did what he was told and transformed. '_Well?'_

Seto growled. "I hear nothing. Are you even trying?"

Yami felt sorry for the demon hunter, he really seemed to be losing it. '_Seto…'_

"Ha! I heard you that time! You said my name!"

Yami turned back into a human and frowned. "You're right, but I still don't understand what is going on. My father might."

"We don't have time for that now," Seto said with a shake of his head. "We need to do something about Pegasus. Are you sure that was him?"

"Yes. He told me to leave now while I still could. He's also definitely a demon."

"Alright, here's what we're going to do. Find Malik and Shizuka, get them to stop the evacuation."

"But these people will be killed!"

"Pegasus knows we're evacuating, if too many people get away he'll change the target. We can't have that happen. There are too many other villages around here which he can attack."

"But he knows you're here. And he saw me trying to get you away from him so he's going to figure out that I'm helping you."

Seto nodded his head. "I know; I'm counting on it. I'm hoping Pegasus will be so over confident that he'll come after this village anyway. Go now and find Malik and Shizuka."

Yami reluctantly nodded his head. He didn't like it but he knew Seto was right.

Not bothering with his cat forum, Yami hurried off. His short legs carried him fast over the ground, running through the swarms of people. To his relief none were appearing to be evacuating, which meant Seto was right in that most wouldn't believe Malik.

"Malik!" he called spotting the blond. Malik turned to him and gave him a confused look.

"Yes? Do I know you? Look it doesn't matter, trust me on this you need to get out of this village."

"Malik, I know, I'm a friend of Seto's, and there's no time to explain but-"

Yami trailed off as a blood-curling scream was heard throughout the square. Searching around for the source, Yami found an old woman pointing towards the sky.

"Demon!" one by one the villagers began to yell.

Glancing upwards, Yami looked on in horror as the majestic white horse lazily flew in a large loop above the village. "Oh no."

"That's the creature!" Malik said to Yami, his voice a soft whisper from fear.

"Malik you have to hide," Yami quickly told him, snapping his head back around to look at the blond. Malik's lavender eyes were wide with fright. "You saw for yourself what happens when people try to run. Seto and I will take care of Pegasus."

Malik bobbed his head before taking off to the nearest building. Unfortunately this drew him the attention of Pegasus for the other villagers were trying to flee. Swooping downwards, Pegasus aimed straight for Malik's back.

"Malik!" Yami yelled, seeing what was going to happen.

Transforming into a leopard, Yami charged forward and leaped at Pegasus moments before his hooves came in contact with Malik's back. With his sharp teeth, Yami clapped down on the demon's right feathery wing.

With a violent flap of his wings, Yami was thrown backwards and landed hard on the ground. Fortunately it gave Malik enough time to escape indoors.

_'Seto where are you?'_ Yami madly thought as he shook his head to clear it from the dizziness he received from when he was thrown to ground.

Eyeing Pegasus, Yami watched as the demon flew back up into the sky as if he wasn't injured one bit.

* * *

**A/N -** Finally I make use of the telepathic link which was hinted at way back in the first chapter, lol. Alas everyone will have to wait until the 3rd story to find out more about it.

As you can see Malik shoved his way into another chapter. He was supposed to be in ZERO chapters until the 3rd story but I have a soft spot for hot gay guys. Poor Malik, all he wanted to do was go yell at Kura for running off and now he's caught up in this whole mess with Pegasus.

One more chapter to go then the 3rd story can start. I know that's the story everyone has been waiting for (well those who read the preview for it anyway, lol).

Review!


	7. The Final Battle

Two arrows shot through the air striking Pegasus in the side making the flying horse cry out in pain. Looking down the narrow road, Yami smiled when saw Seto with another arrow cocked and ready to fire at the demon.

Pegasus was still in the air, so the battle was far from over. Transforming into a cat, Yami jumped up onto a pile of boxes as he made his way to the rooftops. Settling on top of someone's home, Yami crouched down and waited for Pegasus to get close enough.

On the ground, Seto continued firing arrows at the flying demon but now he had the disadvantage of not being able to catch Pegasus by surprise. The flying horse was swooping low, trying to knock the demon hunter down but Seto was too quick.

_'Left'_, Yami silently commanded; he needed Pegasus closer.

Running fast over the hard dirt ground, Seto darted towards where Yami was secretly waiting. Behind the demon hunter Pegasus flew fast, the tips of his front hooves within touching distance of Seto's back.

The brunet hunter was close to Yami now. Timing it right, Yami jumped forward transforming into a leopard in mid air.

Heavily he landed onto Pegasus' back, digging his teeth into the other demon's neck. Frantically trying to rid Yami, Pegasus flew straight up in the air. As the higher Pegasus flew, Yami found himself losing his grip. Releasing his hold, Yami tumbled to the ground.

"Yami!" Seto yelled, watching in horror as his partner crashed onto the ground. Forgetting momentary about Pegasus, Seto rushed towards the fallen leopard and kneeled down at his side. Yami was still breathing but he was unconscious and Seto did not know how seriously the demon's injuries were.

Distracted with Yami, Seto didn't see Pegasus' attack until the strong hooves landed square on into his back.

Being forced over Yami's leopard body, Seto twisted around and pulled free his sword. With a quick swipe back at the demon, Seto hit nothing but air as the winged horse flew back up into the sky.

Forcing to momentary forget about the cat demon, Seto eyed the skies as he attempted to track Pegasus. The bright sun scorched down upon the village making it difficult to find the demon; it was clear Pegasus had plenty of experience using the sun to his advantage.

"Where is rain when you need it," Seto quietly grumbled as he squinted against the brightness. Although he hated to admit it, he could use the help of Yami's demon friends at the moment.

From his right Pegasus attacked, not from the sky but from the ground running out from an alleyway catching the demon hunter off guard once again. Pegasus reared onto his hind legs, kicking at Seto's arm with his front ones. The sword grasped in Seto's hand went flying away as the demon hunter fell to the ground. Pegasus' strong hooves came crashing down, one hitting his shoulder, the other his hip. Seto cried out in pain as he felt bones break. The hooves came crashing down again and this time one nicked him on his head causing the demon hunter to black out.

Slowly Yami stirred back to consciousness; there was a heavy pounding in his head and his back was sore but he was alive. '_What happened?'_ he wondered turning back into a human. His memory was fuzzy; the last thing he remembered was leaping onto Pegasus' back.

_'Seto!' _his mind cried and he frantically began to search for his future mate. To his horror he found the demon hunter laying on the ground with the other demon towering over him.

"Stop it!" he cried out

Stumbling over to Seto, Yami threw his body over the brunet's and closed his eyes. Someone he knew that Pegasus wouldn't want to intentionally hurt him; his anger wasn't directed at demons.

"Why do you protect him?" Opening his eyes, Yami raised his head and looked at Pegasus who was back in his human form. "He's a human."

"He is my mate," Yami corrected him. "I am trying to help him just as you would help your own mate."

"Cynthia…" Pegasus quietly whispered. Taking a chance, Yami decided to keep talking.

"What would Cynthia think of what you've done? She gave her life to protect humans but all want to do is destroy her hard work."

Pegasus seemed to be in a daze as the mere mention of his lover's name brought back memories. "They deserved to die. She helped them and then they killed her."

"_Those_ humans were bad but all are not like that. There's so much more you can do to honor her death."

"You don't know how it is; she was my world."

"She wouldn't want you killing innocent humans. Children are being killed in your rampage! They deserve the chance to be taught that demons are not monsters; but they'll never learn that if demons like you keep on massacring them."

"And what would you do if your mate was killed by a human?"

"Right now the only person I have to worry about killing Seto is _you_. You're becoming just like those you hate."

The sobbing of a young child could be heard nearby. "Mommy!" the young girl cried out.

"Cynthia…"

"Think about what she would have wanted, not what you want!" Yami begged.

"The pain, the pain won't end!"

Yami saw the anger flare up in Pegasus' eye once again and knew that there was no way he would be able to convince the other demon to stop his destruction. The pain in the winged horse's heart was too great; even if the did stop killing humans he would never find the tranquility he was looking for. Only through death would he meet Cynthia again and be at peace.

Stealthily pulling free Seto's dagger from its holder on his belt, Yami lunged forward jabbing the dagger through Pegasus' chest before he could transform again. With a thud the demon fell backwards and landed on the ground in a pool of blood.

"Thank you," Pegasus whispered to Yami as his one eye fell close; a minute later his breathing stilled.

Crawling back over to Seto, the buzzing in Yami's head grew more intense. Reaching his mate, Yami collapsed next to him and fell into darkness.

**

* * *

**

Crimson eyes blinked open to find it black all around. Yami could feel he was on a bed but he had no clue where he was. "Seto?" he called out only to get the reply of a female.

"Shh…relax…"

"Shizuka?"

"Yes." The silhouette of the young demon girl hovered in front of Yami's vision as she damped his forehead with a wet cloth. "You are at my house. Your friend Malik helped me bring you here after what happened this afternoon."

"Where's Seto?" Yami asked in a panicky voice.

"On the bed next to yours." Yami turned his head to the left; on another bed a few meters away he could make out Seto's form in the dark.

"Is he okay?"

"He hasn't woken up yet but I'm sure he'll be fine."

Yami struggled to sit up. "I want to be with him." Shizuka however shoved him back down.

"You need rest," she argued. "You had a nasty fall this afternoon and need to worry about your own recovery."

Yami didn't argue further as he groaned and fell back to sleep.

**

* * *

**

The next day Yami woke again.

With Shizuka not around, Yami stumbled to his feet; his body ached from the fight the day before and he moaned as he took small steps towards Seto's bed before falling into a chair next to it.

To Yami's relief, Seto's breaths were even. "I'm not going to lose you," he murmured as he placed a kiss to the demon hunter's forehead. Thinking of Pegasus, Yami wondered he would do if his future mate had died.

A rumble in his stomach forced Yami away from his love. Wandering out the door, Yami found Malik seated at the table where he once had tea with Shizuka and Seto; that day now seemed a long time ago.

"Hey you're up! Better not let Shizuka see you or she'll be mad. Bitchy female hormones are one of the many reasons why I am gay. "

"Where is she anyway?" Yami asked as he sat down next to Malik. The blond human was drinking some tea and had a bowl of oatmeal in front of him. Yami immediately stole the oatmeal and began shoving it into his mouth. Fortunately Malik didn't mind.

"The market; she said she needed supplies for the stew she's making tonight."

"What happened yesterday?"

"While hiding I could still hear what was happening; when things quieted down I decided to investigate and found you two."

"And Pegasus?"

Malik shook his head. "The other man was dead. Was he another friend of yours?"

"No; he was demon who was attacking the villages," Yami explained forgetting that Malik was an outsider.

"Why would he do that?" Malik asked with a confused look on his face. "I know humans and demons don't exactly get along but that doesn't justify slaughtering humans."

"Humans killed his wife."

"Oh."

Malik remained quiet for a few minutes before speaking again. "You're a demon aren't you?"

Yami paled and stopped eating. "What makes you say that?"

"You have the same eyes as the hunter's cat. Plus you wear the same bell as the cat…"

"Do you care?"

Malik snorted. "You saved my life. Even if I did have a problem, I owe you one."

"Thank you."

Finishing up his meal, Yami headed back into the other room to check on Seto. The demon hunter was still passed out and Yami was slowly growing concern. Bending over his love, Yami was surprised to see two blue eyes snap open.

"Seto?"

"Hey," the brunet replied in a tired voice. "What happened to Pegasus?"

"Dead."

Seto re-closed his eyes. "Good; now Mokuba can rest in peace."

"Hey stay awake; you've been out a long time."

"I've earned my rest."

Yami kissed him hard. "You're not leaving me," he murmured against the brunet's mouth.

"I was trampled by a horse; I need sleep so I can recover. I want to make the trip to Mokuba's grave as soon as possible."

A grin crossed Yami's lips as he understood. "I'll let you rest then."

**

* * *

**

Later that afternoon, Seto was awake again. Malik stayed around long enough to see that he was all right before heading off on his own adventure. Malik still had plans on finding Bakura and wanted to leave now that he was no longer welcome; Yami had no clue whether or not the blond knew that Bakura was also a demon but it was little concern to him.

Yami, himself was feeling a lot better. His body no longer ached when he moved; demons had a quicker recovery time than humans so Yami was almost back to normal from his fall. Much to Seto's annoyance the cat demon constantly hung around waiting on him.

"I don't need help," Seto snarled, holding his broken arm close to his body. Seto was sitting up in bed and was attempting to eat the stew Shizuka had prepared that evening. Yami however had other plans and wanted to hand feed it to Seto.

Yami rolled his eyes and spooned himself some of the stew, keeping it in his mouth instead of swallowing it; leaning forward he kissed Seto's lips, transferring the stew from his mouth to Seto's before moving away and watching the demon hunter gulping down the food.

"Still don't what me to feed you?" Yami asked with a smirk on his face before lifting the spoon up to his mouth once more.

Seto shook his head no before they kissed again.

**

* * *

**

"Are you sure the girl isn't around?" Seto grumbled as he lowered himself in the large wooden tub of water. After three days of lying in bed, Yami had determined that the demon hunter's injuries were well enough so that Seto could move around a bit. The cat demon had then insisted that Seto needed a bath.

"Shizuka knows what we're up to and went to pick wild flowers."

Seto continued to quietly grumble as Yami picked up a cloth and began washing him. The cloth roamed over Seto's body, lightly lingering on his chest as Yami took his time making sure that every part of the brunet's body got clean.

"I'm beginning to think this was all a scheme by you to feel me up."

Yami glared at him. "You still had dried blood all over you."

Seto shut up and allowed Yami to finish washing him. Both were well aware that things could have turned out differently in the battle.

"Alright, you're done," Yami finally announced. He then proceeded to help the demon hunter stand up and wrapped a towel around Seto's waist for him.

"Thank you," Seto quietly murmured as Yami helped him limp back his bed in the other room.

**

* * *

**

"I want to leave soon."

"You're not healed yet," Yami replied as he examined Seto's arm. "Besides, Shizuka's father said we could stay as long as we wanted so it's not like we're getting kicked out."

Seto clasped Yami's wrist with his good hand. "Yami…I need to visit Mokuba…"

Yami saw the intense look in Seto's eyes and sighed. "Get some sleep; we'll leave in the morning."

**

* * *

**

Seto leaned heavily on the walking stick that Yami had given him. "Do you need a break?" the cat demon asked from where he was standing next to the demon hunter.

"I should ask you that," Seto grumbled shooting him a glare. "You're the one who's use to riding around on my shoulders."

Yami rolled his eyes. "I'm just trying to help here."

Seto sighed. "I know; I'm just frustrated. I'm not use to being hurt."

Yami smiled as he leaned over and kissed Seto's cheek. "I know."

**

* * *

**

A week later, Seto and Yami arrived at the place; a grassy field a mile from Seto's home village. A small pile of stones marked the grave, which was located under a tall tree. On their journey, Seto had explained to Yami that when they were younger, Seto had spent hours climbing the tree with Mokuba always attempting to follow him without success. As a carefree child, Mokuba dreamed for the day he would be able to climb the tree but that day never came thanks to Pegasus.

Yami stood next to Seto as they both silently stared down at the grave. Eventually his fingers latched onto Seto's hand and squeezed it tightly.

**

* * *

**

That night Yami and Seto found themselves at the inn of Seto's hometown. Hungrily Seto kissed Yami's lips, needing comfort. Visiting Mokuba's grave had released a flood of emotions from the demon hunter who had not been back there since he began his quest to find the demon who killed his brother.

Yami eagerly responded to the demon hunter's affection, holding the brunet tightly against his body. Seto's kisses became frantic and intense as he laid back on the bed, pulling Yami down on top of him.

"Your arm," Yami whispered, sitting up, not wanting to damage it further. Seto's broken arm had been recovering nicely and the cat demon did not want any setbacks.

With a growl low in his throat, Seto one handedly began undoing the stings that held Yami's leather pants together.

"Seto?"

"You can help by stripping naked," Seto bluntly told him.

"Are you sure about this?"

"Yes! Now will you help me and get our clothes off!"

Yami smiled and nodded his head. Slipping his hands up under his leather shirt, Yami pulled the garment over his head and threw it to the floor. Rising slightly off of Seto's body, Yami's undone pants slid down his legs, which he immediately kicked away, leaving him only wearing the ribbon with bell on it around his neck.

Seto clothes quickly disappeared as well thanks to Yami. "You're going to have to lay still while I ride you," Yami commanded meeting Seto's ocean blue eyes with his red ones. "Your hip is still injured."

Seto kissed him hard once again. "Humans are not as delicate as you seem to think," he murmured against Yami's soft lips. "You have five seconds to get me inside of you or I'm taking matters into my own hands."

Yami softly meowed as Seto went back to kissing him; exploring the cat demon's mouth with his tongue. Rising up slightly, Yami slowly lowered himself purring delightfully as he was filled.

**

* * *

**

Cold wind whipped around the lone body as a cloaked person stepped through the deep snow walking towards a cottage near the center of the village. Stalking up the short steps, a heavy hand pounded on the wooden door.

"What?" a voice snarled from the other side. Gradually the door creaked open revealing a male figure with long white hair.

Angry violet eyes glared at the other male from under the hood of the cloak. Wordlessly, cold tanned hands reached up and removed the hood to reveal a mass of blond hair; the white haired figured paled when he recognized the face.

"Malik?"

"You're in big trouble," Malik angrily replied as he shoved his way into the cottage. The door slammed shut behind him and the yelling began as Malik chewed the fire demon out for leaving him.

**

* * *

**

**A/N – **That's it for this story. Kitty Yami and Demon Hunter Seto will be back in their next adventure shortly.


End file.
